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| People leave the Patriot Candrabhaga Stadium, with a box of snacks given to them after receiving a shot of the Sinovac vaccine for COVID-19 during a vaccination campaign in Bekasi on the outskirts of Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, July 1, 2021. (Photo by= AP/Achmad Ibrahim) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] JAKARTA: Dian Anggraeni has been trying to get herself vaccinated against COVID-19 for the past two months. But so far, her attempts have been unsuccessful, CNA reported. The 22-year-old student from the city of Malang, East Java province, said she had filled in countless online registration forms only to be told later that the available slots for the day had been fully booked.
Only a handful of hospitals and health clinics in Malang are organising vaccination drives, most of which only have a small quota of around 150 people each day. Occasionally, massive vaccination drives are held in the city which attract huge crowds of people without social distancing, all jostling for the 1,000 to 5,000 slots available. “These (massive) events are scary. I wouldn’t dream of going to one,” the university student said.
Complicating the matter is the fact that Ms Anggraeni’s parents are against vaccinations, fuelled by the many hoaxes and rumours circulating online. “There are many people in Indonesia who are like my parents,” she said. With the Delta variant sweeping across the country, causing cases to rise and overwhelming Indonesia’s healthcare system, more and more people are racing to get themselves vaccinated.
