"Right now, it feels much more liberating because last year, we could not visit graveyards due to the ban," a resident, Titik Indrawati, stated in the COVID-19 graveyard section at the Tegal Alur Kalideres Public Cemetery here on Friday.
The Jakarta provincial government had banned its people from visiting graves temporarily to suppress the transmission of COVID-19 in 2021.
Indrawati noted that last year, she and her family were unable to visit graveyards, as the gates of the cemetery were temporarily closed to comply with local government policies.
The resident felt saddened since regardless of whether she liked it or not, she had to return back to her home in Tanjung Priok after having just arrived at Tegal Alur.
Indrawati noted that visiting the graveyard had become a family tradition ahead of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic situation in Indonesia, especially in Jakarta, as the epicenter of cases, had put a halt to that activity.
This activity is an opportunity for Indrawati to take care of the graves of her family members, whom she had lost to COVID-19.
The Tegal Alur Public Cemetery, Kalideres, West Jakarta, continuously makes efforts to prevent COVID-19 transmission by distributing masks to visitors ahead of Ramadan.
Head of the Implementation Unit at the Tegal Alur Public Cemetery Wawin Wahyudi stated that the peak of this year's Ramadan pilgrimage took place on Sunday, March 27, and most of them were pilgrims from outside Jakarta.
As for the distribution of masks, Wahyudin affirmed that the public cemetery also provides hand washing facilities at the gates of the cemetery.
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Translator: Devi N S R, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Suharto
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