Most COVID-19 deaths in Indonesia now among unvaccinated

JAKARTA, Indonesia

Indonesia's health minister said on Monday that most coronavirus-related deaths in the provinces of West Java and the capital Jakarta were of people who had not been vaccinated.

The latest data suggested that only 0.21% of people who had received the vaccine have died, while the percentage of deaths in people who had not been vaccinated reached 3% of total cases.

"Based on our consultations with the regional governments of DKI Jakarta and West Java, most fatalities reported are now among the unvaccinated," Budi Gunadi Sadikin said in a virtual press conference.

In addition, Health Ministry data showed that the mortality rate for vaccinated people was very low.

At least 88 deaths were reported among 618 patients who had not been vaccinated.

Meanwhile, out of 51 patients who had received the first dose of a vaccine, one had died, while there were no fatalities among 78 patients who were fully vaccinated.

"Getting vaccinated could reduce the risks of severe illness, hospitalizations, and death," the minister added.

On the other hand, Indonesia's vaccination levels remain well below the government's 1 million-a-day target for July.

At least 68 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered so far. Around 47.4 million people received the first dose, while 20.6 million are fully vaccinated.

The figure suggests that only 10.05% of Indonesia's 270 million population have been fully inoculated with two jabs.

On Monday, the Southeast Asian country reported 1,568 coronavirus-related deaths, bringing the tally to 97,291.

Indonesia also recorded the world's highest daily death toll over the past few days, surpassing Russia, Brazil, and India.

605 clerics died

Vice President Ma'ruf Amin said at least 605 Muslim clerics died due to coronavirus as of July 7.

"We are concerned that many santri (students) in pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) have been exposed to the virus," Amin delivered his speech during a virtual program.

He said that the death of Muslim experts was a huge loss to the country as they had contributed a lot to religious education, leaving a "hole that cannot be patched."

Meanwhile, Health Minister Sadikin claimed that Indonesia's COVID-19 cases had fallen since they peaked in early July, driven by the spread of the Delta variant.

The confirmed cases on the islands of Java and Bali reached a peak on July 15, 2021, with 43,925 cases, making up 77.4% of nationwide infections numbering 56,757.

According to the minister, coronavirus cases on the two islands with the largest population decreased by 60%.

On Monday, Indonesia reported 22,404 new COVID-19 cases. Thus, the total confirmed cases in the country rose to 3.4 million.

*Writing by Maria Elisa Hospita with Anadolu Agency’s Indonesian language services in Jakarta