Indonesia bans traditional Ramadan exodus to rein in coronavirus
FILE PHOTO: Indonesia's President Joko Widodo attends an ASEAN leaders summit with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in Bangkok, Thailand November 3, 2019. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
JAKARTA - Indonesia will ban the mass exodus tradition, locally known as ‘mudik,’ at the end of the Muslim fasting month in May in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus in the Southeast Asian country, President Joko Widodo said on Tuesday. “I have taken the decision that we will ban mudik,” Widodo told a cabinet meeting. “That is why the relevant preparation needs to be done.”
Widodo cited a transport ministry survey that said 24% of Indonesians were insisting on joining the exodus after Ramadan in the world’s biggest Muslim-majority country.
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