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| A nurse serves another medical worker during a COVID-19 vaccination at a hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia, Jan 21, 2021. (File photo by=REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] Indonesia reached 1 million coronavirus cases on Tuesday (Jan 26), a sad reality for the Southeast Asian nation that has suffered since last March to control the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported.
The island announced 13,094 new cases, increasing the total cases to1,012,350, the country's COVID-19 taskforce said on Tuesday. There were also 336 new deaths, taking the total to 28,468. Indonesia's numbers are some of the highest in Asia but health experts believe the true spread is likely to be far worse. The government started its vaccination program and tightened movement restrictions earlier this month as hospitals came under mounting strain.
Meanwhile, Indonesia has been criticized for having among the lowest testing and contact tracing rates globally, and for focusing on securing vaccines at the expense of trying to enforce health protocols. Sabriyanti, a 42-year-old Jakarta resident, called for the government to impose tighter social distancing rules. "The government should be stricter because we still can see crowds and those who don't wear masks," she said. Reisa Broto Asmoro, the spokeswoman for the government's COVID-19 task force, said 80 percent of people who had caught the virus had fully recovered.
