Evacuation of Indonesians from Diamond Princess Decided Soon

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian government will soon evacuate its citizens from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that is currently docked in Yokohama, Japan, with passengers quarantined due to a coronavirus spread. 

A meeting is set to be held on Tuesday, February 25, to determine whether the Indonesians working aboard the British cruise ship will be evacuated via air or sea transport. 

“The plan is to hold a meeting on Tuesday to discuss the mode of transport used for the [evacuation] of Indonesians aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship,” said Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi to journalists in West Java, Sunday, February 23, in supervising the Jakarta-Bandung fast train project. 

According to Budi, the two evacuation alternatives that are available are the KRI Dr.Soeharso floating hospital and an undecided mode of air transport. The main consideration upon deciding between the two will lie in the duration of the travel time from the Diamond Princess to Indonesia. 

Based on the official report from the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo, there are 78 Indonesian Diamond Princess crew members aboard the cruise ship with 4 of them tested positive for coronavirus transmission. The infected Indonesians are currently treated in a local hospital. 

This would not be the first evacuation attempted by the Indonesian government on Indonesians overseas. The government previously evacuated 238 Indonesians from the coronavirus epicenter in Wuhan Province, China. 

ANTARA