VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Australia confirmed on Sunday that two people arriving from southern Africa over the weekend had tested positive for the Omicron coronavirus variant, adding to a growing number of countries fighting the highly infectious strain.

Health officials in New South Wales, the most populous state, said both passengers had arrived in the state capital, Sydney, on Saturday evening and tested positive for COVID-19 late that night, before genome sequencing confirmed the Omicron variant on Sunday.

Australia joins Britain, Germany and Italy in detecting Omicron cases over the weekend as more nations imposed restrictions on travel from southern Africa.

Both people were asymptomatic, fully vaccinated and in quarantine, said NSW Health. Another 12 passengers from southern Africa were also in 14 days of hotel quarantine, while around 260 other passengers and aircrew have been directed to isolate.

"Close contacts will be contacted regularly, and compliance checks will be undertaken," the health department said in a statement.

Australia imposed new restrictions on Saturday on people who have been to nine southern African countries, as the highly infectious variant raises concerns about another wave of the pandemic.

The countries are South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, the Seychelles, Malawi and Mozambique.

New Zealand announced fresh measures from Sunday evening.

COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said late on Saturday that only New Zealand citizens will be allowed to travel into the country from the nine southern African nations.

Citizens would be required to stay in managed isolation for a full 14 days, as well as undergo testing, he said in a statement.

Australia early this month eased its international border restrictions for the first time during the pandemic, allowing fully vaccinated residents to return to the country without quarantine after higher vaccination levels.

Australia had largely stamped out infections for most of this year until an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant in late June spread rapidly across its east. About 205,000 cases and 1,985 deaths have been recorded so far, lower than many other countries in the developed world. (reuters)

 Japan said on Monday it would shut its borders to foreigners to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, joining Israel in imposing some of the strictest border controls since the variant's discovery in southern Africa.

Japan will bar entry to foreigners from midnight on Monday, and Japanese returnees from a number of specified nations will have to quarantine in designated facilities, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters.

"These are temporary, exceptional measures that we are taking for safety's sake until there is clearer information about the Omicron variant," Kishida told reporters.

"I'm prepared to bear all criticism from those saying the Kishida administration is being too cautious."

The tougher restrictions mark a rapid tightening after Japan on Friday already said it would strengthen border controls on people arriving from six African nations, even though no cases of Omicron have been detected in the country and much about the new variant remains unknown.

Nations around the world have enacted border curbs since the WHO dubbed Omicron a "variant of concern".

But Japan's measures are among the strongest, following Israel in banning entry of foreigners, and Morocco, which has halted all inbound flights for two weeks, and they mark a rapid change of course.

BUSINESS LOBBY

Business lobbies in Japan clamoured for months for the government to ease what were some of the world's most restrictive border controls.

Only last week a monthly limit on inbound travellers was raised from 3,500 to 5,000 and earlier this month, quarantine periods were shortened for vaccinated passengers.

A government official said all the easing will be reversed, although foreigners holding current, resident visas will be allowed back into Japan, as will some diplomatic travellers and humanitarian cases.

Kishida said he would bolster Japan's response to the pandemic after dissatisfaction over handling of the crisis prompted the resignation of his predecessor Yoshihide Suga in September.

Koji Wada, a professor at Tokyo's International University of Health and Welfare and adviser to the government on the pandemic response, said Japanese citizens were expected to support "radical decision" even if the business community was unhappy.

"This is a good opportunity for the government to show their attitude toward COVID-19, and I think many people will support this decision," Wada said.

"The problem is, shutting down the border is not a solution. The government should have a middle-term plan on how to handle this Omicron virus," he added.

Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said a traveller from Namibia has tested positive for the novel coronavirus but further tests were needed to find out if it was from the new variant.

After a slow start, Japan's vaccination rate is the highest among Group of Seven economies, and COVID-19 infections have fallen significantly since a fifth wave peaked in August.

Tokyo reported eight new cases on Monday, down from more than 5,000 a day in the weeks following the Summer Olympics held in Japan's capital.

Health experts are however concerned about a possible rebound this winter, and a round of booster shots are scheduled to start from Dec. 1.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it could take "days to several weeks" to determine the severity of the new variant. (reuters)

Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto confirmed the government will inform the House of Representatives (DPR RI) leadership to designate amendment of the Job Creation Law as a priority in the 2022 National Legislation Programme.

"The Constitutional Court has also been notified regarding the inclusion of the Job Creation Law to the legislation programme's open cumulative list," Hartarto stated at a press conference in Jakarta on Monday.

Earlier, the Constitutional Court had declared Law No. 11 of 2020 on Job Creation as conditionally unconstitutional and ordered the government to proceed with amending the law within a period of two years.

Hartarto drew attention to articles concerning manpower, such as manpower management, job termination benefits, and wage management, currently being targeted for the amendment.

The Home Affairs Ministry will issue an instruction for regional leaders to adjust derivative regulations and the current law enforcement, Hartarto noted.

The government will also hold discussions with the DPR RI regarding the proposed amendment on the Job Creation Law to harmonize and perfect the amendment draft prior to its ratification, he added.

Concurrently, the coordinating minister highlighted that the Job Creation Law had been successful in boosting investment in Indonesia, as the Investment Coordination Board (BKPM) had recorded a 7.8-percent increase in national investment during the January-September 2021 period as compared to the corresponding period last year.

"Our investment value has reached Rp659 trillion (around US$46.1 billion), and 912,402 new job opportunities are created from the first quarter to the third quarter of 2021," Hartarto remarked.

He further expounded that 311,793 new job opportunities were recorded in the first quarter of 2021, while 311,922 new jobs were created in the second quarter, and 288,687 new jobs were recorded in the third quarter of 2021.

A total of 379,051 permits were issued through the Online Single Submission (OSS) System from August 4 to October 31, 2021, with microenterprises accounting for 94.42 percent out of the entire permits applied; small-scale enterprises, 3.91 percent; middle-scale enterprises, one percent, and large-scale enterprises, 0.67 percent, Hartarto added. (Antaranews)

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has urged members of the Indonesian Civil Servants Corps (Korpri) to consistently provide and escalate the best service for the community.

"Every member of Korpri in various positions must possess the same basic value, which is providing the best service for the community," Jokowi stated at the commemoration of Korpri's 50th Anniversary in Jakarta on Monday.

The head of state reminded Korpri's members to stick to the core values of the state apparatus of being service-oriented, accountable, harmonious, loyal, adaptive, and collaborative.

The president also urged the state apparatus to make breakthroughs and bolster sustainable innovations.

"Change the working mindset and avoid inefficiency," he affirmed.

To this end, every service, ministry, and institution has been urged to collaborate across organizations to implement e-governance in an effort to increase the speed of services and credibility.

"Do not forget to build and strengthen integrity across apparatuses and create a transparent and accountable bureaucracy. Do not make it difficult for the public by charging illegal fees," Jokowi pointed out.

The president urged Korpri members to build clean and corruption-free governance. He also drew the attention of Korpri members, as Indonesian citizens, to build a strong bond with one another.

"Strengthen the bond between citizens of Indonesia as our unifying force. Protect the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia, Pancasila, the Constitution, and Bhineka Tunggal Ika," he affirmed.

Jokowi also lauded the work of all Korpri members, especially those on duty at the border, in remote places, and on the outer islands of Indonesia.

"Happy 50th Anniversary to Korpri. I laud Korpri's dedication and hard work in serving the community and running the government," he stated.

All Korpri members spread nationwide had become nodal points for fostering national unity and manifesting the presence of the state to provide services to people across the country, Jokowi remarked.

"The dedication of each member of Korpri to the nation is unstoppable. People's expectations are increasing, and the challenges of change are more complex. New challenges might come from technological developments or due to disasters and pandemics," Jokowi expounded.

Jokowi called on Korpri members to continue to transform, strengthen outlook, and diligently serve the community and country.

"Civil servants must be able to innovate and develop more efficient ways of working. Continue to adapt to the developments in science and technology and provide solutions to the problems in the community," he affirmed.

Each member of Korpri is also urged to be at the forefront of bureaucratic reform and do away with regulations that hinder services in addition to streamlining the organization's functioning.

Furthermore, Korpri can derive benefits from technological advancements.

"We must immediately realize the government's electronic centralized data based on a streamlined organization and advanced human resources. Every member of Korpri should be more responsive and innovative, especially for the community," Jokowi said. (antaranews)