VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Team of the National Police's Health and Medical Center have received 188 body bags containing the remains of Sriwijaya Air Flight SJ 182 victims.

"Up until today, at 9 am, we have received a total of 188 body bags," said Commander of the DVI Team, Police Grand Commissioner Hery Wijatmoko in a press conference in the National Police Hospital in East Jakarta, Sunday.

From the 188 body bags, 162 had gone through complete examination sequences, while the other 26 body bags are still being identified by the team.

"This morning we carried out a four-table examination with four teams, as well as the Indonesia Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (Inafis) personnel," he explained.

Up until Sunday morning, the DVI Team have received 351 genetic or DNA samples from the victims of the ill-fated Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 and the families, consisting of 208 post mortem samples and 142 ante mortem samples.

Wijatmoko explained that his team continue to gather ante mortem samples for identification purposes.

"There are a number of ante mortem samples that we are pursuing, we gather them for further examinations, including a sample from Central Java, as the DNA examination require an in-depth investigation to determine their identity," he said.

Up until Sunday morning, the team has identified 24 victims of the crash through fingerprint and DNA sample matching schemes. They include Okky Bisma, Khasanah, Fadly Satrianto, Asy Habul Yamin, Indah Halimah Putri, Agus Minarni, and Ricko.

There were also the remains of Ihsan Adhlan Hakim, Mia Trasetyani, Yohanes Suherdi, Pipit Priyono, Supianto, Toni Ismail, Dinda Amelia, Isti Yudha Prastika, Putri Wahyuni dan Rahmawati, Makrufatul Yeti, Rosi Wahyuni, Rizki Wahyudi, Nelly, Beben Sopian, Arifin Ilyas and Arneta Fauzia.

The ill-fated Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 was headed from Jakarta to Pontianak when it lost contact on Saturday, January 9, at 2:40 pm local time, it was then discovered that it had crashed in the waters of Kepulauan Seribu.

The airplane took off from Soekarno Hatta Airport at 2:36 pm local time, after a delay due to unfavourable weather, as the flight was previously scheduled to take off at 1:35 pm local time. (antaranews)

The death toll from a 6.2-magnitude earthquake that rattled Majene and Mamuju Districts in West Sulawesi Province on early Friday has climbed to 73, with 27,850 people taking refuge as of Sunday evening, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

"In total, 73 people died," Chief of the BNPB Center for Disaster Data, Information and Communication Dr. Raditya Jati said in an online press conference in Jakarta on Sunday.

Raditya said the death toll comprised nine found in Majene and 64 in Mamuju.

The BNPB recorded a total of 826 people sustained injuries and 27,850 people fled their homes as of Sunday evening.

He said the distribution of logistics to affected areas is somewhat obstructed. But in general, all emergency response efforts are quite conducive and local governments have not faced any obstacle.

The logistics will be distributed among affected people at command posts. However, efforts will also be made to distribute the relief aid to affected people who cannot come to the command posts, he said.

The BNPB noted that the evacuees are in dire need of basic necessities, blankets, mats, tents, medical services, masks, fast food, mineral water, communication means, tarpaulin, heavy duty equipment and personal protective equipment for health officers.

The agency has so far distributed eight sets of isolation tents, 10 sets of evacuee tents, five units of light tower, 2,004 packs of food supplement, 2,004 packs of fast food, 30 units of generator set, 500 packs of baby kits, and 500 thousand masks.
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A powerful earthquake rocked the districts of Majene and Mamuju on early Friday. The epicenter of the quake was located on land, six kilometers northeast of Majene at a depth of 10 kilometers

The shallow quake, which the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) believes was caused by local fault, also destroyed several buildings, including the governor's office, a military office, and Maleo Hotel.

The earthquake, which also damaged many houses and a public health center, additionally triggered three landslides along the Majene-Mamuju road section and disrupted the transportation of people and goods, Raditya said earlier.

Earthquakes regularly hit various parts of Indonesia since the country lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet and cause frequent volcanic and seismic activities.

One of the deadliest earthquakes rattling eastern Indonesia occurred in several areas of Central Sulawesi Province on September 28, 2018.

The 7.4-magnitude earthquake followed by a tsunami that hit the areas of Palu City and the districts of Donggala, Paringi Moutong, and Sigi on Sept 28, 2018, claimed 2,102 lives, injured 4,612, and rendered 680 others missing.

A total of 68,451 homes were seriously damaged, while 78,994 people were displaced. (antaranews)

Indonesia posted a trade surplus of US$2.1 billion, with export value totaling $16.54 billion and imports totaling $14.44 billion, according to Statistics Indonesia (BPS).

"In December 2020, Indonesia’s trade balance showed a surplus of US$2.10 billion," Head of BPS Suhariyanto stated during a virtual press conference on Friday.

The BPS head expounded that Indonesia's export value in December 2020 increased by 8.39 percent month-on-month and rose by 14.63 percent year-on-year owing to an increase in exports in the agriculture, industry, and mining sectors.

Meanwhile, imports in December 2020 increased by 14 percent on a monthly basis, while on an annual basis, it declined slightly by 0.47 percent.

The surplus in December 2020 stemmed chiefly from several commodities, including vegetable oils, mineral fuels, iron, and steel.

In December 2020, Indonesia experienced trade surpluses with several countries: $1.23 billion with the United States, $866 million with India, and US$468.9 million with the Philippines.

On the other hand, Indonesia continued to record a trade deficit of $1.1 billion with China, US$260 million with Australia, and $203 million with Brazil.

Cumulatively, during the January-December 2020 period, Indonesia's trade balance booked a surplus of $21.74 billion, with a total export value of $163.3 billion and total import value of $141.5 billion.

Suhariyanto noted that Indonesia's trade surplus of $21.74 billion last year was the highest since 2011 -- the year when Indonesia's trade balance experienced a surplus of $26.06 billion. (antaranews)

The Central  Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Friday that Indonesia's export value in December 2020 had risen by nearly 14.63 percent year-on-year (yoy), from the corresponding period last year.

The export value of US$16.54 billion in the month is recorded as the highest figure throughout the year 2020 as well as the highest all through the same month over several previous years after having reached $16.97 billion in December 2013, BPS Head Suhariyanto stated.

"There is usually a decrease in exports and imports in December, as we have more holidays in this month. However, the pattern observed in December 2020 was inverted, and this is delightful," Suhariyanto remarked during a virtual press conference.

A growth of 16.73 percent in non-oil and gas commodities contributed to the yoy increase, although contrarily, the oil and gas exports dwindled some 10 percent, Suhariyanto pointed out.

The same value was also recorded as an increasing month-to-month (mtm) figure of 8.39 percent, from November 2020, a positive impact of the oil and gas exports that rose nearly 33.66 percent and non-oil and gas, 7.06 percent, he noted.

This could be a good indication to revive Indonesia's export value, as the demand is increasing from several main target countries over various commodities, while the prices of goods also rose.

"Along with the handling of the health crisis in several countries, including Indonesia, our exports from here onwards shall be more pleasant," Suhariyanto remarked. (antaranews)