Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia on Latest COVID-19 Development, at the Merdeka Palace, Special Capital Region of Jakarta, 16 December 2021

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Peace and prosperity be upon us all.

As stated by Minister of Health, the Omicron variant has been detected in the Indonesian territory. This is inevitable because one of the characteristics of this variant is its high rate of transmission.

What we have to do together now is to make every effort so that the Omicron variant will not spread in the country. We must prevent local transmission.

We must seek to bring the situation in our country under control. We must continue to keep the number of active cases low and we must monitor the transmission rate to stay below one. We must not let it spike again.

Vigilance is important, but these developments must not let us panic. Thus far, the Omicron variant has not shown any characteristic that endanger the lives of patients, especially those who are already vaccinated. Therefore, I appeal to everyone who are not yet fully vaccinated, especially those who have not been vaccinated at all, to immediately go to health facilities to receive the vaccine.

Although the situation in our country is gradually returning to normal, I appeal to you to remain disciplined in implementing health protocols: wearing masks, maintaining physical distance, washing hands. And for local governments, I order that testing and tracing of close contacts be intensified, increased even further.

Lastly, I call on all citizens and government officials to refrain from traveling abroad, at least until the situation improves.

That concludes my statement.

I thank you.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

(MUR/EP)