Indonesia’s largest Buddhist temple closed amid virus spike

JAKARTA, Indonesia

Indonesia’s historical temple Borobudur was temporarily closed on Tuesday amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, an official said.

Jamaludin Mawardi, the acting general manager of the temple, said it closed after Magelang regency in Central Java province, where it is located, was declared a red zone.

"This closure is to support the implementation of the micro Enforcement of Restrictions on Community Activities to prevent the spread of COVID-19, particularly in Magelang regency," said Mawardi, adding that the closure will remain until its pandemic risk status improves.

He said the management will continue to carry out preventive measures, including maintaining environmental cleanliness and spraying disinfectants.

The Southeast Asian country posted a record 21,342 COVID-19 cases on June 27.

With over 20,694 new infections on Monday, the overall caseload has reached 2.13 million since the pandemic hit the country. A further 423 people died in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll to more than 57,500.

Only less than 4.9% of its 270 million population is fully vaccinated – about 13.1 million people, according to the Health Ministry. At least 27.4 million have received the first dose.

On edge of catastrophe

Urgent increases are needed in medical care, testing and vaccinations as Indonesia teeters on the edge of a COVID-19 catastrophe, the Asia Pacific office of the International Federation of Red Cross said.

"The more dangerous and deadly Delta COVID-19 variant is fueling infections that are skyrocketing across Indonesia, overwhelming hospitals and oxygen supplies in Jakarta and other areas of the country," it said in a statement.

“We are seeing record number of infections but every statistic is a person who is suffering, grieving or struggling to support the people they love," said Sudirman Said, secretary general of Indonesian Red Cross.

He added that hospitals are "full to the brim" and oxygen supplies "critically low."

*Writing by Rhany Chairunissa Rufinaldo with Anadolu Agency’s Indonesian language services in Jakarta