Pandemic restrictions across Bali haven’t exactly stopped some people from partying, but the province’s COVID-19 Task Force this week emphasized that parties are still technically prohibited.
“Actually, the National Task Force has not allowed parties to be held, because we anticipate parties to involve crowds and would certainly attract a lot of people,” I Made Rentin, secretary of the local task force, said yesterday.
According to Rentin, a number of hotels and nightclubs in Bali have filed requests to host parties, especially for the upcoming year-end festivities. However, the provincial government has so far rejected those proposals.
Beach clubs and bars in Bali have become the subject of national headlines in Indonesia recently, after Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan highlighted how some of them have been violating existing health protocols. The minister also previously noted that these establishments managed to avoid sanctions because their patrons are prohibited from posting on social media, thereby eluding the watchful eyes of Indonesian netizens.
Rentin, however, said he’s been monitoring the places Luhut had mentioned, but they have so far remained open because officials in Bali are using a soft approach in enforcing health protocols.
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