The President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi), explains why he does not consider lockdown as an option. (Image via Bali Express)

Jokowi reveals why he does not consider lockdown

The President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi) stated that until now, he is not considering lockdown as an option to tackle the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The president said that he had studied the negative effects of lockdown from other countries applying the policy based on the data from the Foreign Ministry.

Speaking on a live feed from the Presidential Secretariat’s official YouTube account, the former governor of Jakarta said that each nation has its own character, culture, and discipline. Indonesia, for one, will not lock its country down.

Reportedly, some European countries such as Denmark, France, and Italy; and Asian – ASEAN countries such as China, Malaysia, Mongolia, N. Korea, and Singapore had announced a full lockdown.

For now, Indonesian people are keeping 3m of physical distance from each other. The term was a change from social distancing. Jokowi asserted that if the Indonesian people are committed to the physical distancing, then the infection rate of COVID-19 can be reduced.

The President added that firm discipline is needed. Quoting from a piece of news about a COVID-19 patient helped her neighbors in preparation for their marriages, the former mayor of Solo said that such a thing is unnecessary.

Currently, Indonesia recorded 579 positive cases. From the number, 49 people died and 29 recovered from the virus.

Source: https://bit.ly/39hqvsi