VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A screenshot of people evacuating due to a 5.9-magnitude tectonic earthquake that struck Central Maluku and was felt in Ambon on November 4, 2021. (ANTARA/Daniel Leonard/am/FR) - 

Earthquake activities in Indonesia increased in November compared to October this year, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG).

"BMKG's monitoring result shows that throughout November 2021, there were 980 earthquake activities in Indonesia with varying levels of magnitude and depth," BMKG's earthquake and tsunami mitigation coordinator, Daryono, noted in a statement issued here on Friday.

There was an increase in earthquake activities compared to October, when 844 quakes were recorded, he said.

The quake activities in November were dominated by small earthquakes of less than 5.0 magnitude and they happened 969 times, he explained. Meanwhile, in October, the number of small earthquakes was 831, he added.

"Significant earthquakes with a magnitude of above 5.0 occurred 11 times, which was less frequent than in October, when they occurred 13 times," he informed.

Active earthquake zones were located in 10 seismic clusters in November 2021, he said.

They were Aceh-Nias, Bengkulu-Lampung-Sunda Strait, South Banten-West Java, South Yogyakarta-East Java, Lombok-Bima-Sumba, Sigi-East Luwu, South-North Minahasa, Maluku Sea, Ambon-Seram, and North Papua, he added.

Meanwhile, there were 49 earthquakes that were strong enough for the public to feel, a decline compared to October, when they were recorded at 71, the official said.

He also highlighted that throughout November destructive earthquake incidents only occurred once. The quake was reported in Wahai, North Seram, Central Maluku, he informed.

The 5.7-magnitude earthquake that struck on November 4, 2021, was centered on a beach 16 km west off Wahai and it destroyed more than 26 buildings, he added.

BMKG has forecast that there will be an increase in extreme weather events in the next week in several regions in Indonesia.

According to the agency, several provinces will experience an increase in the growth of rain clouds triggered by extreme weather and atmospheric wave phenomena//ANT

A screenshot of Consul General of Indonesia at Jeddah (KJRI), Eko Hartono, speaking at a virtual discussion on umrah implementation, as seen from Jakarta on Friday (December 3, 2021). (ANTARA/Asep Firmansyah/KT) - 

Prospective Umrah pilgrims from Indonesia are facing problems in getting their electronic visas (e-visas) registered and recognized by Saudi Arabia's Tawakalna application, which is similar to the PeduliLindungi app.

Consul General of Indonesia at Jeddah (KJRI), Eko Hartono, made the remarks while speaking to ANTARA here on Friday.

"Even though this e-visa has been enabled by Saudi Arabia, travel agencies still cannot register the pilgrims when they choose the vaccine (option)," Hartono explained.

However, the Tawakalna application does not recognize vaccines from China, such as Sinovac or Sinopharm, as there are only four types of vaccines that have been approved by Saudi Arabia—Moderna, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, and Johnson and Johnson, he said.

Thus, the Saudi Arabian system is rendering the e-visas "unreadable", he added.

The same problem is being encountered during e-visa registration, he informed. E-visas for Umrah have not been integrated with the pilgrims' data on PeduliLindungi, so Tawakalna is not able to read vaccine certificates, he said.

E-visas are mandatory for Umrah worship, Hartono pointed out.

"Without an e-visa, they can not do Umrah," he added.

A few days ago, the Indonesian and Saudi health authorities had held a meeting to integrate Tawakalna and PeduliLindungi applications so e-visas can be issued to Umrah pilgrims, he informed.

He said he hoped that there will be good news in the near future so that prospective Indonesian Umrah pilgrims can fly to Saudi Arabia without delay.

Earlier, the government of Saudi Arabia had relaxed the rules for Umrah pilgrims who have obtained the Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines, making them eligible to enter the Holy Land, with the condition they undergo a three-day quarantine.

"Both parties are working hard, but (the two apps) are not able to be integrated yet. I hope there is a solution," Hartono remarked//ANT

Screenshot of Commissioner for National Commission on Violence Against Women Bahrul Fuad at a seminar as seen from Jakarta on Friday, December 3, 2021. (ANTARA/Putu Indah Savitri/my) - 

Commissioner for National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) Bahrul Fuad believes that increasing digital interaction necessitates people to acquire digital literacy about gender-based cyber violence to protect themselves and others.

"The community and young people are not equipped with a sound understanding of how to protect personal data and themselves from the threat of gender-based cyber violence. This is a concern for us at the commission (Komnas Perempuan)," he stated at an online seminar on sexual violence on Friday.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in increased public interactions in the cyber world. However, people are not equipped with proper digital literacy regarding gender-based cyber violence, thereby resulting in an increase in such cases.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, in 2019, the commission had recorded 87 cases of gender-based cyber violence. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of reports increased by 300 percent, as the commission had received as many as 383 reports.

Hence, various stakeholders, including the government, must educate the public about digital literacy, particularly gender-based cyber violence, to reduce such incidents in the cyber world, he said.

"We hope that these young people and various parties would work together to make efforts to prevent violence against women during this pandemic in various forms," Fuad remarked.

Fuad also noted that based on their annual records in 2021, as many as 6,480 cases of violence occurred in households, ranking the highest in terms of the number of cases, thereby constituting 79 percent of the total number of reports handled by the anti-violence commission.

The impacts of sexual violence against women ranges from physical to psychological and social impact as well as financial impact.

"Often, these victims of sexual violence lost their economic resources, as they experienced social exclusion," he remarked//ANT

A screenshot of research director of the Indonesia Center of Reform on Economics (CORE), Piter Abdullah, speaking at a public discussion hosted by the COVID-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery Committee (KPC-PEN) in Jakarta on Friday (December 3, 2021). (ANTARA/Sanya Dinda) - 

The Presidency of the G20 will allow Indonesia to lead the discussion with agendas favorable to its interests, research director of the Indonesia Center of Reform on Economics (CORE), Piter Abdullah, has opined.

"By presiding over the G20, we could set the agenda for G20 meetings with themes that are suited most to our global economic interest, though this would not be an easy task," he said during a public discussion hosted by the COVID-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery Committee (KPC-PEN) in Jakarta on Friday.

Indonesia could also set agendas favorable to other countries, such as on the global healthcare architecture, digital economy, and new and renewable energies, he said.

Unlike the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank that regulate the global financial system, no such organization has been established for the global healthcare sector despite the sector being vital for economic development, he pointed out.

"I am relieved upon learning that our Health Minister is an economist; therefore, we could shift the paradigm that population well-being is not only a healthcare issue but also an economic issue," Abdullah remarked.

After striving to tackle the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia, the country could utilize the G20 platform to discuss measures necessary to prevent the global economy from declining further, he said.

Indonesia's economy recorded a growth of minus 2.07 percent after the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, he noted.

"We could set the COVID-19 issue as part of our agenda. Besides benefiting the global community, the agenda will surely be advantageous for us," Abdullah said.

Indonesia will experience a hike in foreign tourist arrivals and revenue from the tourism industry as short-term benefits of its G20 Presidency, he informed.

"If we organize G20 meetings in one province, for instance, in Bali, I believe the province will be economically benefited by the events," the expert remarked//ANT