Jakarta, Sept. 7, (dpa/GNA) – The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Indonesia surpassed 200,000 on Tuesday, as the pandemic showed no signs of abating in South-East Asia’s largest country.
Indonesia recorded 3,048 new infections overnight, bringing the total number of cases to 200,035, according to the Health Ministry.
The number of fatalities related to the virus rose by 100 to 8,230, it said.
Meanwhile, cases have tripled in the resort island of Bali since it opened its doors to tourists from other parts of Indonesia on July 31.
Bali reported 164 new cases on Tuesday, taking the total to 6,549, with 128 deaths.
Ady Wirawan, an epidemiologist at Bali’s Udayana University, said the island’s reopening to domestic tourists was partly to blame for the spike in infections.
“It’s not because of the visitors per se, but the reopening has prompted people to lower their guard,” he said.
“They were tired because after six months, little had changed and they had to make a living,” he said.
He said low rates of testing meant that the number of actual cases was much higher in Bali and other parts Indonesia.
Plans to reopen Bali to international tourists on September 11 have been shelved.
“Opening to international tourists is pretty much off the cards till 2021,” said Stuart McDonald, a Bali-based travel writer.
Beaches were open and beach bars packed most evenings in Bali, with many visitors ignoring the requirement to wear masks, he said.
“I think we’re at the precipice of things getting extremely bad,” McDonald added.
GNA