"Starting today at 10 p.m., none of our community members will be allowed to remain on the street or to have hangouts," head of the Southeast Maluku Public Order Agency (Satpol PP), Munawir Matdoan, told journalists on Monday in Langgur.
The Satpol PP personnel will conduct joint patrols with the local police and military units to disperse crowds at night. The personnel will talk to people venturing outside and persuade them to go home, Matdoan explained.
Joint patrols on the city's main roads have been started from March 28. During the patrols, security personnel meet with those running businesses at night and request them to respect the government's efforts to contain the spread of the new coronavirus disease, he said.
The patrols are being conducted following an order issued by the National Police chief, Maluku governor, and Southeast Maluku District head for preventing the spread of COVID-19, he continued.
Meanwhile, in Aceh Province, the Aceh Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda) has imposed a two-month curfew to contain the spread of the new coronavirus disease.
"The coronavirus curfew will be effective from March 29 to May 29," spokesperson for the Aceh Provincial Administration, Muhammad Iswanto, said earlier.
The decision was revealed in a Forkopimda petition dated March 29, 2020 and signed by the Aceh Wali Naggroe leader, Malik Mahmud Al Haytar; acting Aceh Governor Nova Iriansyah; and Speaker of the Aceh legislative body, Dahlan Jamaluddin.
Several other figures have also signed the petition — Aceh Police Chief Inspector General Wahyu Widada; Commander of the Iskandar Muda Regional Military Command, Major General Teguh Arief Indratmoko; and, head of the Aceh High Prosecutors' Office, Irdam.
The forum has directed community members across Aceh Province to respect the curfew and not venture outdoors between 8.30 p.m. and 5.30 a.m. local time, said Iswanto.
Those operating businesses such as coffee shops and cafes, shopping malls, karaoke parlors, food stalls, fitness centers, and public transportation providers have also been asked to respect the curfew, he said.
Only public transportation providers supplying basic necessities to communities would be exempt from the curfew, and they would be required to submit legal documents, notifying their activities, he added.
COVID-19, which first struck the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of December, 2019, has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO).
So far,1,285 patients have tested positive for COVID-19 in Indonesia, while 114 persons have died of the disease. Jakarta has continued to record the highest number of confirmed cases and fatalities. (INE)
Related news: Banda Aceh to impose partial lockdown to combat spread of COVID-19
Related news: Central government to decide on imposing local lockdown: Home Minister
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Shariva A, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
