JAKARTA. The Indonesian government has issued travel advice for all Indonesian people who wish to travel to South Korea due to the ongoing spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), a viral respiratory infection caused by MERS-coronavirus (MERS CoV), in the country.

“We have issued travel advice and I have talked about it with the health minister [Nila Moeloek]. We advise all our people to anticipate the [MERS outbreak] situation in South Korea,” said Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi as quoted by Antara news agency in Jakarta on Monday.

She said that in the travel advice, the government listed the areas in the country currently affected by the MERS outbreak.

“We issued travel advice detailing areas which are currently dealing with the MERS outbreak while medical suggestions to prevent [travelers] from contracting the illness have been published by the Health Ministry on its official website,” said Retno.

The minister said the government would first watch closely the development of the MERS outbreak before increasing its alert status to a ‘travel warning’ against all travel to the outbreak-affected country.

Earlier, the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, called on Indonesian tourists vacationing in the country to stay vigilant regarding the spread of MERS and adhere to several medical suggestions issued by health authorities in the country.

Among suggestions issued by South Korea’s Health Ministry to prevent the transmission of MERS are to avoid public crowds, to use masks in public spaces, to routinely wash hands, and to get medical help from the nearest hospital if experiencing MERS-like symptoms.

As of Monday, the number of MERS-infected patients in South Korea has reached 87. (ebf)

Editor: Uji Agung Santosa