Cinemas in Jakarta plan to reopen with 50% capacity, implementing strict health protocols

Chairman of the Indonesian Cinema Owners Association (GPBSI) Djonny Syafruddin announced on 7 September that cinemas in Jakarta will be reopened starting 14 September. The announcement was made after a meeting with the government about this matter, in which they concluded that cinemas can be opened with a maximum capacity of 50%. 

“Cinemas in the Jakarta area will be reopened first, as it is our key target. Hopefully, Bekasi, Bogor, Depok and Tangerang will follow suit, while we are waiting to reopen cinemas outside Java and Bali as well,” he stated. 

Djonny emphasised that every cinema manager will implement strict health protocols. All visitors are required to download and use the PeduliLindungi application and show their vaccine certificate that can be accessed through the application. 

"You have to [have the PeduliLindungi app]. This is the main, absolute requirement. If we cannot fulfill this requirement, we can't open the cinema," Djonny said.

“We still have a meeting today. Once everything is settled, we will distribute a QR code to the whole association, as the government wants all cinemas to have a single QR code. So we will also be the one to educate them [on how the system works],” he added. 

PeduliLindungi has become the primary tool used by the government to implement the 3T (tracing, testing, treatment) strategy. However, in reality, a lot of people who are tested positive for COVID-19 are still going to malls.

Deputy Minister of Health Dante Saksono stated at an online conference on 6 September that PeduliLindungi has detected 1,625 people with a "black" status entering malls. 

There are four categories in the PeduliLindung application, namely green, yellow, red and black. The black category refers to those who are tested positive for COVID-19 and those who had close contact with COVID-19 patients.