VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Mar. 19 - The AstraZeneca vaccine tends to have greater benefits than risks, according to an official from the Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI), here, Friday.

“The AstraZeneca vaccine offers more benefits than risks that continue to occur sporadically so far,” Chief of LIPI’s Laboratory for Applied Genetic Engineering and Protein Design, Wien Kusharyoto, stated.

Kusharyoto pointed out that the vaccination program implemented by using the AstraZeneca vaccine can be continued to prevent the looming risks of COVID-19, right from infection until death.

“Based on the earlier clinical tests on AstraZeneca and the uses of it this far, this vaccine is safe,” she revealed.

Several European nations, including Germany, Italy, and France, have reportedly halted the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine by this week following growing concerns over its security despite the WHO’s statement on Wednesday (Mar 17) that it has more benefits than risks.

Use of the AstraZeneca vaccine was temporarily suspended, as one of the receivers reportedly suffered from blood clots after being administered that vaccine.

Until March 10, 2021, as many as 30 blood clot cases were reported among five million people administered the AstraZeneca vaccine across the European Economic Area.

In handling such cases, Wien affirmed that these countries had adopted the prudent principle that enabled them to temporarily suspend the AstraZeneca vaccination until a direct link was established between death and the use of the vaccine. (Antaranews)

Mar. 19 - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) instructed all parties to not stay silent about the treatment meted out to the Indonesian badminton team at the All England 2021 tournament, according to Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali.

"President Jokowi has called on us to take quick and best steps, especially to save our Indonesians there," Amali noted during a press conference at the Ministry of Youth and Sports office on Friday.

"On the other hand, the president also urged that this unkind treatment should not be ignored and should be questioned," he affirmed.

The minister echoed the government’s disappointment over the treatment meted out by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to the Indonesian badminton team at the All England 2021 tournament.

Moreover, players and officials were treated unfairly after being forced to withdraw from the tournament. They are not allowed to use the lift facilities and must return to the hotel on foot.

The Indonesian team currently had to undergo independent isolation at the hotel until March 23.

Amali ensured that the Indonesian Embassy in England had also provided logistical support to the Indonesian team in Birmingham since they were not allowed to leave the hotel.

The government is also currently looking to gain clarity on the fate of the Indonesian team in Birmingham.

If it is not possible to continue the match, they can return to Indonesia.

"I just received news that the required logistics were supplied to them. Currently, we are working to prevent our players from being confined (in hotels)," he concluded.

The Indonesian team was required to withdraw from the BWF World Tour tournament after 20 of the 24 members received an e-mail from NHS, the British health authority, informing that one of the passengers on the plane that they were travelling in from Istanbul to Birmingham had tested positive for COVID-19.

They are required to undergo self-isolation at the hotel for 10 days from March 13-23.

The Red and White Squad had earlier undergone a COVID-19 test after having arrived in Birmingham, Saturday (Mar 13), and all of them had received negative results.

However, in accordance with the UK government's regulations, the entire team will self-isolate for 10 days from the date of their inbound flight after a person travelling onboard had tested positive for COVID-19

The BWF was also considered to have failed to organize this matter since it could not take precautionary measures to handle unexpected events, such as what the Indonesian team had to experience. (Antaranews)

Mar. 19 - Indonesia’s Food and Drug agency (BPOM) said on Friday it has approved the usage of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine after reviewing reports the vaccine had caused blood clots among some recipients in Europe.

In a statement, the agency said that even though vaccination could lead to “adverse events” following immunisation, “the risk of death from COVID-19 is much higher.”

“The benefits of giving the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine outweigh the risks,” the agency said.

BPOM did caution against the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine for people with a low blood platelet count, known as thrombocytopenia, and blood clotting disorders.

Indonesia had previously delayed administering the AstraZeneca vaccine following the blood clot reports, saying it was awaiting the results of a review by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The European Medicines Agency said this week there were no indication the events were caused by the vaccination, a view echoed by the WHO. AstraZeneca also said its review had shown no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots.

Indonesia has been grappling with one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in Asia – with 1,437,283 cases and 38,915 deaths.

The Southeast Asian nation kicked off its vaccine programme this January, after receiving its first shipment of the CoronaVac vaccine produced by China’s Sinovac Biotech.

Indonesia received 1.1 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine via the COVAX vaccine-alliance scheme this month and is set to receive some 10 million more in the next two months. (Reuters)

Mar. 19 - Authorities in the South Korean capital of Seoul will scrap a controversial order for all foreign workers to be tested for coronavirus, they said on Friday, after an outcry sparked complaints by embassies and a human rights probe. 

The move came after the headquarters of the nation’s pandemic control effort said it had asked the city to withdraw the order and improve testing policies to eliminate discrimination or rights violations.

“The request is to prevent anti-COVID-19 efforts from causing any discrimination or human rights violations against citizens and foreign nationals,” the headquarters said in a statement.

City authorities still recommended testing for both foreign and Korean workers in “high-risk” workplaces, however.

The reversal came as the National Human Rights Commission confirmed it was investigating if the policies of several local governments for all foreign workers to be tested were discriminatory.

Seoul and the neighbouring province of Gyeonggi are among the local government bodies to have ordered such tests, drawing criticism from South Korean lawmakers, university officials, and foreign ambassadors.

Gyeonggi, where the order is in force until Monday, said it had dropped a separate requirement for negative tests by foreigners being hired for jobs.

Health officials had defended the measures as necessary to blunt a surge in infections among foreign residents, saying they were not discriminatory as tests had also been ordered for those linked to outbreaks in churches, nightclubs, and elsewhere.

On Friday the U.S. embassy said it had raised concerns with senior authorities and was strongly urging fair and equitable treatment of all its citizens.

The independent human rights commission said it launched an investigation after several complaints, such as one from the British ambassador, who said the rules were “not fair, they are not proportionate, nor are they likely to be effective”.

Commission chief Choi Young-ae said she was concerned the policies could lead to discrimination, especially through the use of demeaning language toward undocumented workers.

“This act has made the word ‘foreigners’ look like ‘those suspected of diagnosis for COVID’ or ‘criminals who have done something illegal,’ which led to hate comments online,” she said in a statement.

Seoul National University, one of South Korea’s most prestigious, had threatened to seek an injunction if the city did not drop the policy, Koo Min-gyo, its dean of student affairs, told Reuters. (Reuters)