Church workers in Indonesia are worried that emergency measures to stop a massive surge in coronavirus cases could also threaten the country’s fragile food security.
During the last week Indonesia has recorded more than 20,000 new cases every day.
New emergency measures that apply to Java and Bali – two of the most populace islands – include tighter restrictions on movement and air travel, a ban on dining in restaurants and the closure of all non-essential offices.
Director of Caritas Indonesia (KARINA), Fr. Fredy Rante Taruk, said Indonesia is “on the knife’s edge of a devastating health crisis, but when measures like this are in place people like street hawkers and vendors, farmers, day labourers, and drivers may suffer, because it’s harder for them to make ends meet”.
“We’re finding that not only are some people losing their employment completely, but even those who are able to continue their work in rural areas, like farmers, are struggling to find people to buy their produce, so they’re also struggling to meet their basic needs.”
Fr Taruk said Caritas Indonesia is working through church networks in rural areas to support marginalised communities to maintain food supplies and make an income during this crisis.
“It’s easy to forget people out on the farms, but if they’re not able to produce food in future seasons because they can’t afford seeds, then the whole country is at risk of food shortages and famines as we recover from the pandemic.”
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said last week that Indonesia was “teetering on the edge of a Covid-19 catastrophe”.
Currently, 93 per cent of beds in Jakarta’s hospitals are occupied, and some emergency wards have been forced to set up tents in car parks to make space.
Indonesia has had the worst COVID-19 outbreak in South East Asia, with about 2.3 million positive cases and more than 60,000 deaths so far.
In response to the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases, the government has called on gas companies to increase production of medical oxygen,