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Indonesia Bans Travel for Ramadan Amid Pandemic

VOA News

   Indonesia will ban people from traveling to celebrate Ramadan, bracing
   for a possible surge in COVID-19 cases in the largest Muslim-majority
   nation in the world by population.
   Tens of millions of Indonesians who want to leave big cities for the
   holiday will be barred starting Friday, the government said Tuesday,
   marking a more aggressive response after it failed to convince people
   to stay put voluntarily.
   Indonesia has been criticized as bungling its initial response to the
   virus, which at first it denied had spread to the nation.
   Indonesian President Joko Widodo said a state survey before the ban
   found 68% agreed not to travel for Ramadan, but about one-fourth
   insisted on traveling.
   "This means that there is still a very large number, which is 24%,"
   said the president, according to an announcement on the Ministry of
   Communication and Information Technology website.

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