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Are we prepared to contain the Omicron variant?
Protocols were there out of government requirement, but not truly enforced.
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Travelers wait to have their documents checked prior to boarding a flight at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, near Jakarta, on June 4, 2020. (AFP/Adek Berry)
I
was on my way to visit a friend in Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara. I arrived at the airport early on Dec. 1, fully armed with a v-flex n95 respirator and a head cap. Despite the uncomfortable gear, I had mentally adjusted to vacation mode, imagining the quiet, serene week I had planned ahead of me.
However, what I saw at the airport deeply upset and disturbed me, and I feel compelled to share what I observed there.
Short version. I do not think we are prepared to contain the new Omicron strain, or to manage the soon-approaching year-end crowd. Long version. Here is my account of what happened during my travels.
Entering Terminal 2E of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, there were touchscreen machines that supposedly allow travelers to validate their vaccination and antigen/PCR test result status. However, no clear instructions were given, the online form took forever to load, and it ended up in error.
Using technology to help manage the pandemic is impressive. But if they are just going to sit on the sidelines as an exhibit, they will just be a waste of public resources.
The next stations were desks for manual validation, but only for printed hard copy certificates. If you asked the staff what to do, they would tell you "It's OK. Just go inside, they can validate it for you". In other words, I could not be 100 percent sure whether the people in the massive crowd waiting at the check-in counters were all COVID-free. I was anxious and began to feel unsafe. It was the earliest sign that protocols were there out of government requirement, but not truly enforced.
Approaching the check-in counters, I saw long queues everywhere – business and economy classes alike. Between any two active check-in counters, one was closed. That's great. However, within each long line, even though there were stickers that indicated the "optimal" distance of 1 meter between people, no one adhered to that rule. Everyone queued close together, fearing that someone would steal their spot.
