Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – The Indonesian government has decided to impose a policy on emergency community activity restriction (locally known as PPKM) from July 3 to 20, 2021, specifically for Java and Bali islands.

"I have decided to implement emergency PPKM policy, from July 3 to July 20, 2021 specifically in Java and Bali," President Joko Widodo said in his statement at the Merdeka Palace here on Thursday.

He emphasized that the policy was taken after going through a study and getting a lot of inputs from ministers, health experts, as well as heads of local administrations.

According to the head of state, the policy is very important for the safety of the Indonesian nation in the midst of spike in COVID-19 cases.

“As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic in the last few days is growing very fast, due to the new variant which is also a serious problem in many countries. This situation requires us to take more decisive steps so that we can stop the spread of COVID-19 together," he stated.

The president noted that the policy enforces the restrictions on community activities stricter than what has been applied so far.

The government will mobilize all available resources including the Indonesian military and police, government employees, doctors, and health workers to work hand in hand in overcoming the spread of COVID-19.

Reporting by Indonesia Window