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Officials repatriate 172 Indonesians, recover two bodies from Fiji
As many as 172 Indonesian seafarers and the remains of two others arrived in Jakarta on Wednesday after being stranded on a ship off the coast of Fiji due to the closure of borders and seaports because of COVID-19.
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Indonesian seafarers line up for immigration clearance following their arrival at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Wednesday. (Courtesy of the Foreign Ministry/-)
T
he Indonesian Embassy in Fiji has repatriated 172 Indonesian sailors and retrieved the bodies of two others who died on a ship off the coast of the Pacific island nation, the Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday.
Most of the Indonesians in this group had been working as crew on board a ship, the name of which the ministry did not disclose, for at least two years.
However, they were held up in Fiji because of the closure of borders and international flights that the government in Suva enacted in May.
“While the Indonesian seafarers were on board, the Indonesian Embassy in Suva also provided logistical assistance for them,” said Judha Nugraha, the ministry’s director for overseas citizen protection, in a statement.
Judha said that the Fijian authorities agreed to allow the stranded ship to dock in the capital after intensive diplomatic lobbying by ministry and embassy officials.
They agreed so that the seafarers could immediately return to Indonesia, with the embassy facilitating the flights.
All 172 people arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Greater Jakarta on Wednesday evening, using a chartered flight by state flag carrier Garuda Indonesia.
Most Indonesians registered in Fiji work in the shipping and fisheries industry, mostly as crew on foreign-flagged vessels operating in the Pacific Ocean. The pandemic has severely limited the activities of these ships, in some cases causing them to be stranded for months at a time.
Read also: Indonesia repatriate nationals from epicenter of coronavirus outbreak
Officials also sent home the bodies of two men who died on board the ship. An autopsy found that they had died from causes other than COVID-19 and as such were allowed to be immediately returned to Indonesia.
Judha attributed the successful repatriation effort to the close bilateral relationship between Indonesia and Fiji, as well as the swift work of coordination among Indonesian ministries and agencies to ensure that the employing companies could guarantee the seafarers’ return.
He acknowledged the difficulties of repatriating Indonesian crewmen and migrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the strict border policies that several countries have enacted.
Last week, the Indonesian Embassy in Paramaribo also repatriated up to 60 Indonesians from Suriname and Guyana whose work contracts had expired but who could not immediately return to Indonesia because of a lockdown in both countries.
The Foreign Ministry recorded as of Thursday that up to 5,006 Indonesians abroad were infected with COVID-19. Of this figure, 208 had died while 588 were still receiving treatment. Some 4,210 people had recovered from the disease.
