TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo or Jokowi announced the temporary closure of direct flights to and from China to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus to Indonesia. The closure will start on Wednesday, February 5.

"With regards to the latest development of the coronavirus outbreak, Indonesia decided to, first, stop all direct flights to and from mainland China starting on Wednesday, February 5, 2020, at 00:00 Jakarta time," President posted to his Instagram account @jokowi on the evening of Sunday, February 2.

The same information was delivered by Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. She made the statement during a press conference after a limited meeting with the President at the Air Force Air Base, Halim Perdanakusuma, Jakarta, Sunday.

Through his official Instagram account, President Jokowi conveyed a number of things underlining the statement from Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. Jokowi reiterated that Indonesian nationals have been repatriated from Hubei Province, China. Widodo said that the 245 Indonesian citizens would go through a 14-day observation period in Natuna Islands before returning to their respective families.

Jokowi also said that all passengers arriving from China after staying there for 14 days are temporarily prohibited from transiting in and or entering Indonesia.

The president has also rescinded the visa-free and visa on arrival facilities for Chinese nationals until there are successful efforts to curb the spreading of the novel coronavirus.

For now, the government advised all Indonesians to refrain from traveling to mainland China.

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