VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Batam Port Health Office has advised ten foreign nationals who had high body temperature upon arrival at the international airport in the city to return home to avoid the spread of coronavirus or COVID-19. The policy was adopted after so many countries announced the coronavirus outbreak, Chief of the Quarantine Control and Epidemiology Surveillance of the Batam Port Health Office Romer Simanungkalit said Tuesday.

"We did that. Today, I have not yet received information," he said when asked about foreign nationals sent home this time.

Since a new strain of coronavirus or SARS CoV-2 first surfaced in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, the port authorities advised ten foreign nationals to return home, Head of the Batam Port Health Office Achmad Farchanny said.

The office did not reject their arrival but only advised them to return to their country. "We only suggested to them that they return home. If they recover they can return (to Batam)," he said.

Most of the foreign nationals who returned home before immigration checks were from Singapore. "This means that we did not reject them but only advised them to return to Singapore," he said.

They returned to their country voluntarily, he said.

The office allowed foreign nationals, who had higher body temperature while passing through a thermal scanner, to enter Indonesia. However, they also had to pass through a series of medical checkups first at a hospital.