COVID-19 vaccine update | Indonesia to punish those who refuse to take coronavirus shots

A health care worker prepares a dose of China's Sinovac Biotech vaccine for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), during a mass vaccination for vendors at the Tanah Abang textile market in Jakarta, Indonesia, February 17, 2021. (Image: REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana)

President Joko Widodo-led Indonesia government has made COVID-19 vaccination compulsory in order to quicken its inoculation program to curb the pandemic. With this, those refusing to take the shot may have to end up paying hefty fines, reported Bloomberg.

Though the revised presidential rule has made strict provisions for those who refuse the vaccine by stopping or delaying social assistance programs, the administration has left the final decision of the final sanction to local governments to decide.

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Citing people's fear of cost, availability, health risk and purity (halal), the Indonesian government had made the vaccine free of charge. As per September survey data, around 35 percent people in the country are concerned on the vaccine's effectiveness, while 65 percent of Indonesians would want to get the shots.

Until February 18, only 1.15 million people have received their first shot of the Sinovac Biotech Ltd.’s vaccine in Indonesia. Meanwhile, the administration wants to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to meet a goal to inoculate more than 180 million people by the end of 2021.

Following this, the Widodo government is considering to allow private businesses to fund and distribute COVID-19 vaccines. The government had said that private campaign will use different types of vaccine and it will remain free for Indonesians.

The government in its statement had clearly mentioned that it will hold the control of the database and will be the sole regulator of the inoculation process. However, the private vaccinations will not be held at public health facilities. It will only take place after the first round to vaccinate health workers and public servants is completed, Hindustan Times reported quoting the government statement.

The Southeast Asian country has until now administered over 1.7 million shots in a program after President Joko Widodo himself receiving the first dose. The country has signed deals with China's Sinovac Biotech Ltd and other manufacturers including AstraZeneca Plc and Novavax Inc. However, only China's Sinovac has been administered as of yet.