VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi and Cambodian Home Minister Krolahom Sar Kheng discussed efforts to prevent human trafficking.

At the meeting held in Phnom Penh on Thursday (August 4), Marsudi called on the Cambodian authorities to accelerate the process to repatriate Indonesian victims of trafficking.

"In particular, the foreign minister encouraged the acceleration of the negotiation of agreement between Indonesia and Cambodia regarding the eradication of cross-border crimes," the ministry's Director of Protection for Indonesian Citizens Judha Nugraha stated during an online press conference on Friday.

The memorandum of understanding would serve as the basis for closer cooperation to handle cases of human trafficking, especially in terms of prevention, victim protection, law enforcement against perpetrators, and policy coherence in handling trafficking.

The Cambodian police released 55 Indonesian migrant workers held captive by an online scammer in Sihanoukville on July 30, 2022. Seven other Indonesian migrant workers were released on Sunday.

Cambodian Minister of Home Affairs Krolahom Sar Kheng said he supported efforts to accelerate the repatriation of victims and the handling of other similar cases.

Kheng encouraged the completion of a bilateral agreement on eradication of transboundary crimes.

At the meeting, an agreement was reached that the repatriation of Indonesian citizens would soon be conducted in stages according to the availability of flights.

In its first stage, Judha said 12 victims would be repatriated on Friday.

"There are indeed flight limitations, but we can (start the repatriation), as early as today, by prioritizing vulnerable groups, women, and children," he stated.

The ministry will coordinate with relevant ministries and institutions for the rehabilitation of victims and reunite them with their respective families while awaiting the legal process against the perpetrators.

Marsudi had earlier met Cambodian Police Chief General Neth Savouen in Phnom Penh following the release of 62 Indonesian victims of fraud and trafficking by an online scamming syndicate in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

Fraud and human trafficking targeting Indonesians has increased, according to data from the Directorate for the Protection of Indonesian Citizens.

The number of Indonesian victims of human trafficking in Cambodia has increased, from 119 people in 2021 to 298 people during the January-July 2022 period.

Speaking in connection with the current case, the number of victims has increased, from the initial report of 53 people to 129 people.

The victims have been rescued and are at the Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh, Judha stated. (Antaranews)

Indonesia's economy grew by 5.44 percent in the second quarter (Q2) of 2022 as compared to the same period last year (year-on-year/yoy), according to Statistics Indonesia (BPS).

Economic performance during the period was even better than that recorded before the pandemic and indicated that economic recovery since the second quarter of 2021 continues and is getting stronger, BPS stated.

"Economic growth this year has steadily increased. It started from the second quarter of 2021, the third quarter of 2021, the fourth quarter of 2021, the first quarter of 2022, and the second quarter of 2022, (the economy) continues to grow," BPS Head Margo Yuwono noted here on Friday.

The 5.44-percent growth was contributed by the increase in gross domestic product (GDP) at Current Prices (ADHB) and GDP at Constant Prices (ADHK), Yuwono elaborated.

In the second quarter of 2022, the GDP at ADHB was recorded at Rp4,919.9 trillion, an increase from the second quarter of 2021, at Rp4,176.4 trillion.

Meanwhile, the GDP at ADHK increased, from Rp2,772.9 trillion in the second quarter of 2021 to Rp2,923.7 trillion in the second quarter of 2022.

Yuwono said, as compared to the previous quarter (qtq), the domestic economy has grown by 3.72 percent.

"This growth is in line with the pattern of quarterly growth. Hence, the second quarter is always positive and higher than the first quarter, partly due to seasonal factors," he stated.

Cumulatively, he remarked that Indonesia's economy in the first half of 2022 was recorded to grow 5.23 percent as compared to the first half of last year.  (Antaranews)

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Deputy Chief Lestari Moerdijat stated that the SOE-produced COVID-19 vaccine served as a token of the state's creative ability in adapting to the impacts of the pandemic and global crisis.

"Efforts to constantly encourage (public) creativity in meeting domestic needs must be lauded amid the pandemic and global crisis that have yet to end," Moerdijat noted in a written statement received here on Thursday.

The MPR deputy chief delivered the statement in response to the state-owned enterprises minister's remark about the SOE-produced COVID-19 vaccine that would be released in August 2022 for use by everyone. Currently, the vaccine was undergoing the phase 3 of clinical trial that involved 4,040 subjects aged 18 years and above.

She called for consistent efforts to make the nation rise amid the global crises.

She expected stakeholders to actively contribute to tap into the national potential in rising to the challenges of several sectors, such as medical, education, economy, politics, social, and cultural.

"Now is the right time to utilize the national potential as best as possible in order to pursue independence/sovereignty," she stated.

She opined that the spirit to supply the COVID-19 vaccine independently could serve as motivation to pursue similar aspects in other sectors

She affirmed that independence did not necessarily mean that they could do everything alone since essentially, no nation in the world could live without depending on others.

"National independence could be initiated by instilling self-confidence and optimism in the citizens in responding to every challenge they face," she said.

Hence, several efforts to foster public optimism were strategic measures that should be applied immediately to tackle the impacts of the global crises.  (Antaranews)

The COVID-19 Handling Task Force has urged the governments of five provinces that have recorded the most additional COVID-19 cases to bolster the implementation of the health protocols.

"According to a field survey, people's compliance with (the health protocol on wearing) masks tends to be lower than (for) social distancing," the task force’s spokesperson, Wiku Adisasmito, noted at a virtual press conference on the development of COVID-19 handling, which was accessed from here on Thursday.

In addition, the regional governments’ performance in monitoring and reporting the community’s compliance with the health protocols has also decreased.

"Only 17 of the 34 provinces reported (their monitoring results) in the past week -- between July 25–31, 2022," the spokesperson noted.

He informed said that according to the latest reports from the 17 provinces, more than 40 percent of sub-districts/villages have failed to comply with the protocol on wearing masks, while more than 20 percent have failed to obey the social distancing regulation.

The five provinces that have contributed the most additional cases this week have comprised Jakarta (19 thousand cases), West Java (7 thousand), Banten (4 thousand), East Java (2 thousand), and South Kalimantan (610).

Hence, the level of health protocol compliance in the five provinces must be re-evaluated, Adisasmito said.

For instance, the compliance rate for the protocols on wearing masks and maintaining physical distancing in West Java province is below 20 percent, he noted.

"I hope that the community and local officials who are supervising the (implementation of the) health protocols will rebuild and maintain the compliance and obedience (toward the protocols) together, as well as not underestimate the (impact of the) pandemic," he remarked.

The spokesperson also pointed out that several studies have reported that if COVID-19 cases are not constantly suppressed, the public health burden would become heavier in the future.

The studies have pointed to the increasing need for further medical treatment of patients due to health problems experienced after recovering from COVID-19, he informed.

“The potential (of having the additional health problems) will be greater if the patient has experienced mental disorders prior," he added. (Antaranews)