Face Masks from Indonesian Benefactors Arrived in South Korea

ACTNews, JAKARTA - South Korea is currently one of the countries with high number of COVID-19 cases. By Sunday (3/8), 248 new COVID-19 cases were reported making the total number of 7,382 COVID-19 cases in South Korea. Daegu is the place with most corona cases in South Korea.

Responding to this, Aksi Cepat Tanggap began sending a supply of masks to South Korea on Friday (3/6). A total number of 13,000 pieces of masks will be distributed especially for Indonesian workers in South Korea.

Misgiyanto, an ACT volunteer from the Sahabat Kita Foundation, received the 13,000 masks from ACT to be delivered to South Korea on Friday (3/6). Misgiyanto stated that the people in Korea panicked after the first casualty of COVID-19 occurred. The demand for masks is increasing while supplies are running low, making the price soars. "To get a face mask, the people in South Korea have to queue for hours. They are only allowed to buy a limited amount of masks. The buyers must also show their ID, "he explained.

On Sunday (3/8), masks from the Indonesian benefactors distributed through ACT reached South Korea and were received by the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul. The Indonesian Ambassador to South Korea Umar Hadi in his thank-you letter said that masks from ACT would be distributed to the areas that are most severely exposed to corona, including Daegu and other cities in Gyeongsangbuk Province.

"The face mask aid from ACT not only protects Indonesian citizens from dangerous viruses, but also alleviate the mask scarcity that occurs in South Korea," Umar wrote.

Previously, ACT has also sent masks for Indonesian citizens in Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and most recently South Korea. Sucita Pri Ramadinda from ACT's Global Humanity Response team explained that mask delivery will continue to countries with significant COVID-19 cases. In the near future, the mask aid will also be delivered to the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing to be given to Indonesian citizens in China. "We do this to help Indonesian citizens get face masks for free," she explained. []