VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Mar. 17 - Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi confirmed that the government will not ban the homecoming exodus, locally known as "mudik," during Idul Fitr 2021.

"The government, through the Transportation Ministry, has not prohibited the homecoming exodus during Lebaran this year," Minister Sumadi stated at a working meeting with Commission V of the House of Representatives (DPR) here on Tuesday.

Sumadi spoke of the ministry’s intent to coordinate and work along with the COVID-19 Task Force by intensifying efforts and tracing people, who were going home.

Furthermore, the ministry has issued seven policies pertaining to transportation for Lebaran comprising endeavors to continue to rigorously disseminate information on health protocols and implement them from the point of departure, during the trip, and when the travelers arrived at their destination.

The ministry will also guarantee the availability of means of land, sea, and air transportation. Subsequently, they will also ensure the feasibility of transportation facilities and infrastructure and correspondingly improve order and boost security at several points of transportation services.

Moreover, the government will coordinate intensively with stakeholders, including the traffic coordinator (Korlantas), police, public infrastructure (PU), Jasa Marga, local governments, and also transportation service operators by establishing joint posts.

The government will also conduct traffic engineering to ensure smooth and orderly flow of transportation during Lebaran in addition to striving to monitor and evaluate the implementation of Eid transportation, starting from preparation to post-implementation.

"The Transportation Ministry, as the national coordinator of Eid transportation, expects the homecoming activities to run smoothly. We also invite Commission V to jointly monitor the preparations and the homecoming process," the minister stated. (Antaranews)

Mar. 17 - An esteemed leader of the Dani tribe in Puncak District, Papua Province, called on his members to resolutely uphold Indonesia's sovereignty in the land of Papua.

"I call on people of my Dani tribe to firmly uphold Indonesia's sovereignty and obey the government as God's representative on earth," Jembatan Murib stated here on Tuesday.

Moreover, the government has given special attention to Papuans through development programs and the recruitment of talented Papuans to serve as state officials within and outside Papua.

Murib, who leads the Dani tribe people in Puncak District, also expressed gratitude to the military and police personnel for ensuring safety and security for the Papuans.

The Dani tribal head affirmed that the Indonesian military (TNI) and police personnel had proffered a sense of safety and security to the people owing to which they were able to conduct their daily routine activities in secure and peaceful conditions.

The presence of the TNI and police personnel in Papua is aimed at protecting and securing the people at large, Murib affirmed.

Meanwhile, People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker Bambang Soesatyo called on the TNI and National Police to bolster their efforts to safeguard Papua.

Soesatyo highlighted the importance of endeavors to maintain security, peace, and public order in the province to respond to the ongoing threats posed by armed Papuan criminal groups.

Through their violent acts, those notorious groups have instilled a sense of fear among the members of local communities. Hence, the Indonesian security personnel should crack down upon them to stop their criminal acts.

In winning the fight against the criminals, security personnel must curtail their space to move; block their communication networks, and interrupt their supply chains, he affirmed.

Papua Police Chief Insp. Gen. Mathius D. Fakhiri reiterated that law enforcement efforts against those posing security threats and terrorizing the local people would be continued.

Security disturbances have been reported sporadically from several areas, such as Intan Jaya District, where armed Papuan groups operate.

Reports indicated that several armed Papuan groups, including the one led by Sabinus Waker, operate around Intan Jaya.

Armed groups in the district have repeatedly engaged in gunfights with security personnel. They have also gone on a shooting rampage targeting innocent civilians.

ANTARA had reported the launch of a security operation -- "Operation Nemangkawi" -- in 2019 following the massacre of 31 workers from PT Istaka Karya in Kali Yigi and Kali Aurak in Yigi Sub-district, Nduga District, on December 2, 2018.

Armed Papuan rebels, who were reportedly behind the brutal killings of the Trans Papua construction workers, also killed a soldier, identified as Handoko, and injured two other security personnel, Sugeng and Wahyu.

The government has launched emergency response measures to address the impact of the most recent instances of armed conflict that had compelled around 600 locals to flee their homes.

To this end, Indonesia's Social Affairs Ministry recently supplied aid packages to those taking refuge.

The aid packages comprised 660 packaged food boxes, 420 food packs for children, 100 folding tents, 200 folding mattresses, and 300 blankets. (Antaranews)

Mar. 17 - APEC senior officials, academia, and experts strive to unlock the potential of the indigenous people's contribution to the region's economy, with better data and insights, propelling APEC's endeavors to nurture inclusive growth that benefits everyone.

The Asia-Pacific is home to around 70 percent of the world's indigenous population. However, the full potential of the community’s contribution to the region’s economy remains untapped, according to a written statement -- issued by the APEC Steering Committee on Economic and Technical Cooperation -- that was received here on Tuesday.

In a policy dialog on understanding and valuing indigenous economies in APEC held virtually earlier this month, panelists from various APEC economies shared their experiences in amassing and measuring data on the indigenous economies, stressing on the importance of boosting data collection efforts and the quality of data itself.

"In Aotearoa New Zealand, indigenous economic growth is an integral part of inclusive growth and prosperity," New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta noted in her opening remarks at the policy dialog.

Minister Mahuta expounded that in the last two decades, New Zealand has borne witness to the growth of the Maori economy, from NZD16.5 billion (some US$11.84 billion) in 2006 to NZD69 billion (around US$49.53 billion) in 2019.

The minister strongly believes that good data and information is critical to gaining a better understanding of the concept of the indigenous economy and its role within the wider economy.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for reliable and timely data to aid policymakers to understand the impact on indigenous people to deliver targeted, informed, and tailored responses and also support economic resilience," Mahuta affirmed.

One of the key challenges encountered in accruing data on the indigenous economy is the varying definitions of indigenous individuals, households, and businesses across different APEC economies.

"Normally, an economy comprises households, business, and the government," Chief Economist and Director of Business and Economic Research Limited (BERL) Hillmarè Schulze noted in her presentation at the policy dialog.

Schulze further expounded that the first stage of understanding the measurement of indigenous economies is identifying and measuring what constitutes indigenous economic actors, translating to those who are part of the economy, which could include data on individuals, households, and businesses.

"Once we have data on the economic actors, we can then proceed to the next step that is measuring the participation and contribution," she stated.

Minister Mahuta reiterated the importance of closer collaboration between members in advancing indigenous economic inclusion in the APEC.

"This work is important to improve the lives and well-being of all indigenous people across the Asia-Pacific," Mahuta stated.

Inclusive economic growth is a crucial agenda item under New Zealand’s leadership of the APEC this year, as its member economies join, work, and grow together to build back better.

APEC senior officials acknowledged the potential of the indigenous economy and encouraged cooperation for data gathering and the sharing of best practices in assessing the contributions of indigenous economies. (Antaranews)

Mar. 17 - The State-owned Enterprises (SOE) Ministry is preparing to set up joint vaccination centers in several cities, such as Semarang, Surabaya, Bandung, and Banten, as part of efforts to build herd immunity against COVID-19.

"The plan is that next week we will open it (joint vaccination center) in Semarang, (and) at the end of March, we will open it in Surabaya,” spokesperson for the SOE Ministry, Arya Sinulingga, revealed here on Tuesday.

The ministry is also planning to expand its immunization capacity by extending the vaccination venue to the Tennis Indoor Senayan Building in the Gelora Bung Karno Senayan area, Jakarta, from just Istora Senayan previously, he added.

The vaccination capacity at Istora Senayan has reached five thousand to seven thousand people per day, Arya said.

With the addition of the Tennis Indoor Building, Arya said he hopes that COVID-19 vaccination coverage from the BUMN Ministry for the Jakarta area can be increased to 12 thousand to 14 thousand people per day.

The joint vaccination center set up by the ministry at Istora Senayan has been functional for the last nine days.

According to Arya, the public's enthusiasm for the vaccination program has been very high.

On Tuesday (March 16, 2021), 7,500 people were vaccinated at the joint vaccination center, Arya informed.

"The possibility is that the vaccination of the elderly plus public service officers on the 9th day has reached 50 thousand today," he added.

The SOE Ministry is planning to open joint vaccination centers in Bandung and Banten during the second phase of the national vaccination program in April, 2021.

Each center will target to vaccinate up to five thousand people every day, as part of efforts to expedite the COVID-19 vaccination program in Indonesia, Arya said.

So far, the government has vaccinated 4,468,951 Indonesians against the coronavirus. Of the total figure, 1,716,749 people have received their second vaccine dose as well. (Antaranews)