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Cruel COVID-19 creates hell, disrupts lives in 6 months
Shuttered halls: Most outlets at Jakarta’s shopping malls remain closed due to COVID-19, as seen in this view down the hall of a shopping mall on Jl
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huttered halls: Most outlets at Jakarta’s shopping malls remain closed due to COVID-19, as seen in this view down the hall of a shopping mall on Jl. Fatmawati, South Jakarta. The COVID-19 pandemic, which reaches its six-month mark on June 1, has disrupted the lives of millions of people around the globe. (JP/Arief Suhardiman)
Many of us did not realize that the cruel COVID-19, carried across the world by the coronavirus (SARS-COV-2), turned six months old on June 1. The first COVID-19 case appeared in Wuhan, China, on Dec. 1, 2019.
In just six months, the deadly disease has spread to 213 countries and regions and killed 377,152 people, including 1,641 in Indonesia. More than 6.36 million people have been infected with COVID-19 as of June 1.
COVID-19 has brought us immense pain, suffering, death and destruction. It has not only changed our lives and made billions of people prisoners in their own homes.
“I do not know what hell looks like, but I and my family have been experiencing this hell for the last three months. I cannot work anymore in my office and I lost my income. My children cannot go to school. We have been staying inside the house like prisoners,” Niko Daryanto, who lives in West Jakarta, told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
COVID-19 has affected both poor and rich people.
“I cannot go anywhere. All shopping malls, movie theaters, cafes, bars and health clubs are closed. I cannot go to university. What a life! It’s really a hell,” Jim Aditya, the son of a businessman who completed his undergraduate study recently, told the Post.
People cannot go to mosques, churches, viharas and temples.
“We cannot pray peacefully at this difficult time at mosque. The government has asked us to pray at home because of this COVID-19,” Supriyanto, who works in a private company in Central Jakarta, said.
Many youngsters have been suffering due to a lack of freedom and activities.
“I cannot go to my university and shopping malls anymore. At these places, I used to meet my boyfriend, who is my classmate. Our parents will not allow us to go out during this pandemic. I miss my boyfriend badly,” Mega, not her real name, told the Post.
COVID-19 has hit harshly millions of poor people, who survive on daily income. For all these people, no work means no food on their plates.
“I work as a parking attendant on the street near a mall. Before this pandemic, my life was OK due to generous tips from car owners. Now, I do not have any income, as there are no cars at my place,” Muhammad Fajar told the Post sadly.
In Indonesia, the first COVID-19 cases appeared on March 2. Due to a lack of capacity to conduct COVID-19 tests, Indonesia has conducted just 333,415 tests, far below countries like Venezuela and Pakistan, which conducted 975,825 and 561,136 tests respectively.
Testing is an important element in handling COVID-19. Without tests, there will not be any COVID-19 cases in the country.
Given Indonesia’s 270 million population, if Indonesia cannot increase its testing capacity, it will be a disaster. During the last 91 days, Indonesia was able to conduct an average of 3,800 COVID-19 tests per day.
Many people suspect that the real number of COVID-19 positive cases might be much higher than what the government reported.
The government is now in a very difficult situation. While there is no vaccine or cure for COVID-19 and nobody knows when this pandemic will end, closing down most of business establishments for a long period is not an option, as it would destroy the country’s economy and render millions of people without a job and without any income. This would create social unrest as people do not have money for food.
With the daily increase in the number of positive cases and deaths within the limited capacity of conducting tests, opening up business establishments and schools is also not an option for the government. As a middle ground, the government must open businesses with strict regulations and physical distancing measures.
At this critical time, we should not lose hope and confidence in ourselves.
“Life is a mix of good and bad phases. Make the most of the good times, and never lose hope during the bad times,” said Prem Jagyasi, a popular Indian author and a motivational speaker.
There are two important things. The first one is to survive until a vaccine is found. The government, businesses and people must work together, in whatever way, to survive.
The second thing is that the government must begin the process of producing vaccine, if found anywhere, immediately in Indonesia.
Once a vaccine is found anywhere, Indonesia should get a license to produce the vaccine here, which saves time and lives. We should not wait until the vaccine comes to us. We should pick up the ball first. We should realize that time waits for no one.
