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Families start ‘mudik’ early despite virus warning
Families residing in Jakarta have started to pack their bags and return to their hometowns despite the government’s warning for people not to travel home for Idul Fitri this year so as to prevent the spread of COVID-19
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amilies residing in Jakarta have started to pack their bags and return to their hometowns despite the government’s warning for people not to travel home for Idul Fitri this year so as to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
As of noon on Thursday, the coronavirus had infected at least 790 people across the country and had killed 58 in total.
Hesti Winarni, a 43-year-old meatball vendor in Jakarta, decided to return to Wonogiri, Central Java, since her business had experienced a decline in sales since the outbreak hit the capital city.
“The kids are off from school. Wonogiri is also safer than Jakarta,” she said.
Hesti was not the only one to return to her hometown, as transportation authorities in Wonogiri have recorded about 14,000 people coming into the regency within the last week. According to data gathered at the Giri Adipura bus terminal in the regency, 876 buses from Greater Jakarta carrying a total of 14,140 passengers had arrived in Wonogiri.
Such an increase in the number of passengers usually only occurs during the Idul Fitri mudik (exodus), said Agus Hasto Purwanto, the head of the bus terminal.
“Normally, fewer than 1,000 passengers arrive in Wonogiri every day. However, the number has risen over the past few weeks to 2,000 per day,” he said, adding that the number was expected to remain high until the end of the COVID-19 emergency, possibly in late May.
About 7.2 million travelers returned to their hometowns for Idul Fitri in 2019, according to the Transportation Ministry.
Wonogiri Regent Joko Sutopo defended people’s decisions to return to their hometowns, as most of the people who migrated from the regency worked as small-scale vendors and factory workers across Greater Jakarta. They had no option but to go home, he said, as they were earning no money during the work-from-home period.
Joko said the administration could prevent the spread of COVID-19 within the region despite the mass exodus.
“We’re disseminating information [on COVID-19] to neighborhood units [RTs] and youth groups in communities. We are not worried because everything is going as planned,” the regent said.
Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo said he had obtained reports from regents and mayors that an initial homecoming surge from Jakarta had recently entered the province.
“In Jepara, 44 buses arrived from Jakarta carrying people returning home. It is indeed happening early, maybe because the offices and companies where they worked have reduced their working hours or have even stopped operating,” he said.
While the returnees’ health has yet to be confirmed, Ganjar hoped they did not cause problems for residents, including students, who had been advised to stay at home.
He appealed to residents who were currently working in Jakarta, the hardest-hit city in Indonesia, not to go home just yet and vice versa.
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“We’re disseminating information [on COVID-19] to neighborhood units [RTs] and youth groups in communities. We are not worried because everything is going as planned.”
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“Those in Central Java, don’t go see your relatives in Jakarta,” Ganjar said. “If it is necessary, there should be a record of each traveler’s health provided at the border to Central Java.”
West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said the number of people under monitoring for COVID-19 had jumped dramatically because many residents who worked in Jakarta had chosen to return home to wait out the crisis.
The number of people in monitoring for COVID-19 in Sumedang surged to 1,807, the majority of whom were workers who had just returned from Jakarta. The regency had only one confirmed case as of Sunday.
The West Sumatra administration has issued a letter calling on all residents living outside of the province to remain where they are. The circular was signed by West Sumatra Regional Development and Cooperation Bureau head Luhur Budianda on Monday.
“We have issued a letter of appeal to temporarily delay plans to return home,” Luhur said, adding that the appeal was also addressed to all heads of Minang community organizations outside of West Sumatra.
Syahrizal Syarief, an epidemiologist at the University of Indonesia, said that the most dangerous thing about returning to one’s hometown or going on mudik during the outbreak was that people would flock to public transportation hubs – the worst possible place to be if the aim was to contain the virus’ spread.
He urged the government to issue a much stronger policy to avoid the anticipated mass movement of people. This was particularly vital because he believed that people would not wait until Ramadan to return to their hometowns, especially those who were financially affected by physical distancing or the work-from-home policy.
“Living costs are more expensive in Jakarta than they are back in rural areas. [People] most definitely won’t wait until the fasting month to go home,” Syahrizal said.
As available trips on mass transportation become increasingly limited, the Transportation Ministry is considering whether to restrict or even ban this year’s mudik to cut down on mass gatherings.
