The government confirms the entry of a new variant of Covid-19, namely Omicron, in Indonesia. Due to the addition of Omicron cases in Indonesia, 11 person. The government is reviewing regulations on foreign travelers.
Government Spokesperson for the Covid-19 Handling Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito mentioned that “The government will always review its policies in order to ensure that its Covid handling policies are still relevant and effective in preventing Covid,”
The case of this Omicron variant is considered quite dangerous because it has a higher number of mutations compared to its predecessor variant, causing concerns about changes in the way the virus behaves. Mutations in the Omicron variant occur in > 50 genetic base point: 32 mutations in horn protein (spike protein) and 10 mutation point in the 'receptor-binding domain' which serves as the attachment site for the virus to enter human cells and infect.
other than that, This variant can avoid the immune system such as lowering the neutralizing ability of good antibodies obtained from 2 previous dose of vaccination or COVID-19 infection. There are as many 13 countries in the world that are prohibited from entering Indonesia in order to prevent the spread of new variants of the Omicron type. The 13 countries are:, south Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique, Eswatini, Malawi, Angola, Zambia, United Kingdom, Norway, and Denmark.
Has been recognized by Wiku Adisasmito, Government Spokesperson for the Covid-19 Handling Task Force that Indonesia cannot completely close itself off from outside countries regarding the anticipation of the spread of the Omicron variant. However, The government has made optimal efforts by prohibiting citizens whose countries have been confirmed to have the Omicron variant from entering Indonesia.
“Indeed, relatively none of the countries in the world can close the socio-economic connection with other countries. The potential for transmission of new variants from other countries is inevitable,” said Wiku.
Therefore, for Paradivas who want to go or vacation abroad, you should reconsider considering the impact of this Omicron variant.
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