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DENPASAR (BLOOMBERG) – Bali, the popular tourist island for backpackers, has always been seen as fertile ground for the coronavirus when millions of foreign tourists flock to its beaches. But today the Indonesian authorities promote him as a model in addressing the pandemic.
According to Governor Wayan Koster, success in fighting the virus has come with the help of approximately 1,500 traditional village committees with considerable influence over the majority of Hindu residents.
The island with a population of 4.2 million has reported only four virus-related deaths and 337 confirmed cases for a 1.2 percent death rate, well below the national average of 6.4 percent.
“Many people before were very concerned that Covid-19 severely hit Bali as it is the largest tourist destination in Indonesia,” Koster said in a telephone interview.
“But so far, the facts show a totally different picture.”
Bali’s relative success in containing the virus may give it an advantage in attracting visitors when international travel resumes and reviving its tourism-dependent economy.
It is also in stark contrast to widely criticized efforts nationwide, which have led to deaths rising to more than 1,000 and officials now warning that the disease can infect nearly 100,000 before it begins to alleviate.
While no deadline has been set to reopen the island to tourists, Koster says a strategy is ready, but that it will be implemented after Bali fully recovers from the pandemic.
Authorities turned to influential village committees and Hindu beliefs to ensure residents stayed home and outside visitors were not allowed to avoid broader infections after a British tourist with Covid-19 was the first in Bali. succumbing to the virus in early March.
People were also asked to perform certain Hindu rituals for protection, forcing them to obey local leaders, according to Governor Koster.
RELIGIOUS RITUALS
Few other places in Indonesia, an archipelago of 18,000 islands, have a village structure similar to Bali where leaders have so much influence over a population of its size. So there is also a lack of evidence, with President Joko Widodo asking to expand the nation’s diagnostic capacity, saying the daily tests of 4,000-5,000 specimens were “well below our target.”
The province avoided stricter social distancing rules imposed in places like Jakarta and West Java, but closed three villages after infections from the local community by the return of migrant workers. Authorities are prepared to handle the return of thousands of migrant workers, including from cruise ships, in the coming weeks, Koster said.
“The villages have a very strong influence on the community. Regardless of what the elders in the villages say, the people will comply,” said Ngurah Wijaya, adviser to the Bali Tourism Board.
“This has allowed the government to effectively enforce its policies at the community level.”
Bali’s triumph on the virus front is not limited to suppressing new cases or limiting loss of life. Covid-19’s recovery rate on the island is more than 66 percent, compared to the national average of 22 percent.
Three laboratories on the island can now analyze almost 500 specimens a day, instead of sending samples to cities outside the province initially. That allows authorities to speed up contact tracing and isolation, Koster said.
But the revival of its tourism industry in the run-up to the pandemic is far from assured. The decision on the protocols to follow to reopen the business will be made in consultation with elected local leaders and community and religious leaders, Koster said.
The island is home to hotels operated by industry leaders such as Marriott International, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and Hilton Worldwide Holdings.
According to official data, in Bali, famous for its beaches, picturesque terraced rice paddies and temples, foreign tourist arrivals fell 22 percent to 1.04 million in the first quarter of the previous year. The island received a record 6.2 million foreign tourists last year.
“The Balinese also realized that tourism is the source of their livelihood, so we must take care to win the trust of visitors,” said Wijaya.
“That is probably a key difference that Bali has compared to the other regions.”
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