![]() Of these 6,150 deaths, 981 were listed as coming from the Greater Jakarta area. As per 15 August, statistics from the central government’s Covid-19 task force gave a cumulative total of 6,071 deaths, and on 16 August Ministry of Health data put the toll at 6,150. In the context of this media coverage and scrutiny from the WHO, the government has expanded its definition of Covid-deaths. However, looking at the current published statistics, there still seems to be the potential for significant under-counting. Narrow definition (those who tested positive)īroad definition (those who tested positive + those with symptoms consistent with Covid-19) They indicate that taking a broad definition of Covid-19 deaths may increase the total by 4-5 times: Most strikingly, the Tempo investigation shows the size of the potential under-count of Covid-19 deaths, based on data obtained from government sources. It also cites sources saying that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has queried Indonesia’s official statistics. It outlines competing efforts to control the data from a special task force and the Ministry of Health, and the use of alternative definitions of what constitutes a death from Covid-19. Particularly useful is the Tempo report, which provides a perspective on how the data published by the Indonesian government is assembled. Reporting in the Jakarta Post, Tempo and Kompas, among others, has give indications of the difference this can make to overall Covid-19 deaths statistics. (On the low levels of testing in Indonesia, see the below chart from ) Given the low levels of testing in Indonesia, that may mean excluding many who die from the virus from the headline statistics. It does not include those who have not received a positive test result, but have symptoms consistent with Covid-19. It is important to note that the government has tended to only include confirmed Covid-19 cases in the official mortality statistics. A few months down the line, I wanted to look again at the issue. One issue highlighted by the post was under-reporting of Covid-19 related deaths. In May I posted about some difficulties with Indonesia’s official Covid-19 statistics. In this context, the interview I mention above is an interesting insight into the thinking of someone who is likely to play an increasingly important role of the national stage in the future. Jemma Purdey, who has conducted research the Djojohadikusumo dynasty, recently wrote an interesting profile that argued that Sara was ‘track to take over Gerindra’ once Prabowo is off the scene. She did not directly address her family background, as daughter Hashim Djojohadikusumo ( estimated net worth as of 2019 $800 million) and niece of Prabowo Subianto (former presidential candidate and current Minister of Defence). She also described being called by God to get involved in politics. ![]() In the interview she spoke about idealism, money politics, and the challenges and possibilities presented by being a young, female, Christian politician in contemporary Indonesia. She is a former member of parliament and a current candidate to be deputy mayor of South Tangerang. Although most of the podcast episodes are in Indonesian, one recent edition was an English language interview with Sara Djojohadikusumo. It is produced by a site that describes itself as the ‘Political Voice of Indonesian Millennials’. As an avid consumer of podcasts, I keep my eyes (or should that be ears?) open for podcasts about Indonesian politics and have just started listening to the PinterPolitik podcast.
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