JAKARTA - The large-scale social distancing measures to be implemented in Jakarta from Friday (April 10) will be binding for its residents, with gatherings limited to five people and ramped up police patrols to enforce compliance by the public.
The measures include the closure of all schools, most workplaces and public facilities, ranging from sports centres to museums; the shortening of operation hours for all public transport services, including the MRT, commuter rail and buses to 12 hours; and restrictions on social, cultural and religious activities.
However, eight sectors providing essential services, including health, food, energy, logistics and finance, will remain in operation.
The measures, most of which were already put in place after the capital declared a state of emergency on March 20, will now be mandatory for Jakarta residents, with penalties for defiance.
The police and military personnel will ensure that the public follow the restrictions and will intensify patrols across the city, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said at a press conference on Tuesday evening. He noted that outdoor gatherings will be limited to only five people.
"The provincial government, military and police will implement all measures strictly. We won't be negligent and will not let events run if transmission potentially occurs," he said.
He added that the provincial government will distribute social aid, including staple food, to the poor and vulnerable population.
Officials are familiarising city residents with the new measures, such as by putting up banners in public spaces.
Jakarta Police chief Nana Sudjana said at a separate press conference on Wednesday that the police will take action against people attending any gatherings after the large-scale distancing policy takes effect, classifying such actions as "light crime".
However, he underlined that the police favoured a persuasive approach when handling incompliant residents, with enforcement actions a last resort.
"If we have warned (people in a gathering) thrice, but the concerned people continue, law enforcement will be applied on them," he said.
Jakarta, which accounts for around half of the country's deaths and infections, was the first province to be granted approval to employ these measures by the central government.
The city of around 10 million people has so far been the area worst stricken by the coronavirus, with a death toll of 114 and 1,470 infections.
On Wednesday, the capital saw eight more deaths and 101 new cases.
Indonesia reported 218 fresh infections on Wednesday, taking the total number of cases in the country to 2,956, Dr Achmad Yurianto, government spokesman on Covid-19 management, said at a daily press conference on Wednesday.
The world's fourth-most populous nation also saw another 19 deaths within 24 hours, resulting in 240 fatalities overall. Indonesia has seen the highest number of fatalities in South-east Asia.
The number of recovered patients was up by 18 to 222.
As Jakarta got a nod from Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto on Tuesday to apply large scale distancing measures in Jakarta to put the brake on the Covid-19 outbreak, West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil proposed to include West Java cities neighbouring Jakarta - Bekasi, Bogor, and Depok - as 70 per cent of disease transmission has taken place in Greater Jakarta, which also comprises the city of Tangerang in Banten province.
