'Ghosts' Keep Frightened Indonesians Inside, Away from Coronavirus
2020-04-15
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1People living in Indonesia's Kepuh village have recently had some frightening experiences.
2Mysterious white beings jump out at unsuspecting people on the street.
3They disappear just as quickly as they appear.
4The village on Java island has deployed a group of "ghosts" to patrol, or walk around, the streets.
5Village leaders hope the ghosts will frighten people enough to keep them inside their homes and safely away from the new coronavirus.
6"We wanted to be different and create a deterrent effect," said Anjar Pancaningtyas.
7He is head of a village youth group that worked with the police on the unusual way of urging social distancing.
8Known as "pocong," the ghostly beings usually wear white cloth.
9Their faces are nearly white, except for a dark substance around their eyes.
10In Indonesian stories, they represent the trapped souls of the dead.
11When the ghosts first started appearing this month, they had the opposite effect of what local leaders had hoped for.
12Instead of keeping people inside, they brought them outside.
13Locals hoped to see the pocong for themselves.
14The organizers have since changed their methods.
15They have instead launched surprise pocong patrols, with village volunteers playing the part of the ghosts.
16President Joko Widodo has resisted declaring a national lockdown to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
17He has instead urged people to take part in social distancing and to wash their hands and keep clean.
18But some communities have decided to take their own measures.
19They have put restrictions on people's movements, ordered lockdowns and, in Kepuh's case, used ghosts to frighten people back into their homes.
20"Residents still lack awareness about how to curb the spread of COVID-19 disease," said Kepuh village head Priyadi.
21"They want to live like normal so it is very difficult for them to follow the instruction to stay at home."
22There are now over 4,200 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Indonesia, and over 370 deaths.
23Observers fear those numbers will rise sharply.
24Researchers at the University of Indonesia estimate there could be 140,000 deaths and 1.5 million cases by May without stronger restrictions on movement.
25When Reuters reporters recently visited Kepuh village, the supernatural plan seemed to be working.
26Villagers would run away in fear when the ghosts appeared in front of them.
27"Since the pocong appeared, parents and children have not left their homes," said Kepuh local Karno Supadmo.
28"And people will not gather or stay on the streets after evening prayers," he added.
29I'm Ashley Thompson.
1People living in Indonesia's Kepuh village have recently had some frightening experiences. Mysterious white beings jump out at unsuspecting people on the street. They disappear just as quickly as they appear. 2The village on Java island has deployed a group of "ghosts" to patrol, or walk around, the streets. Village leaders hope the ghosts will frighten people enough to keep them inside their homes and safely away from the new coronavirus. 3"We wanted to be different and create a deterrent effect," said Anjar Pancaningtyas. He is head of a village youth group that worked with the police on the unusual way of urging social distancing. 4Known as "pocong," the ghostly beings usually wear white cloth. Their faces are nearly white, except for a dark substance around their eyes. In Indonesian stories, they represent the trapped souls of the dead. 5When the ghosts first started appearing this month, they had the opposite effect of what local leaders had hoped for. Instead of keeping people inside, they brought them outside. Locals hoped to see the pocong for themselves. 6The organizers have since changed their methods. They have instead launched surprise pocong patrols, with village volunteers playing the part of the ghosts. 7President Joko Widodo has resisted declaring a national lockdown to slow the spread of the coronavirus. He has instead urged people to take part in social distancing and to wash their hands and keep clean. 8But some communities have decided to take their own measures. They have put restrictions on people's movements, ordered lockdowns and, in Kepuh's case, used ghosts to frighten people back into their homes. 9"Residents still lack awareness about how to curb the spread of COVID-19 disease," said Kepuh village head Priyadi. "They want to live like normal so it is very difficult for them to follow the instruction to stay at home." 10There are now over 4,200 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Indonesia, and over 370 deaths. Observers fear those numbers will rise sharply. 11Researchers at the University of Indonesia estimate there could be 140,000 deaths and 1.5 million cases by May without stronger restrictions on movement. 12When Reuters reporters recently visited Kepuh village, the supernatural plan seemed to be working. Villagers would run away in fear when the ghosts appeared in front of them. 13"Since the pocong appeared, parents and children have not left their homes," said Kepuh local Karno Supadmo. "And people will not gather or stay on the streets after evening prayers," he added. 14I'm Ashley Thompson. 15The Reuters news agency reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Bryan Lynn was the editor. 16_______________________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18ghost - n. the soul of a dead person thought of as living in an unseen world or as appearing to living people 19deterrent - n. something that makes someone decide not to do something 20soul - n. the spiritual part of a person that is believed to give life to the body and in many religions is believed to live forever 21lockdown - n. a state of isolation or restricted movement as a security measure 22residents- n. people who live in a particular place 23awareness - n. the state of knowing that something exists 24supernatural - adj. unable to be explained by science or the laws of nature : of, relating to, or seeming to come from magic, a god, etc. 25prayer - n. words spoken to a god or higher being especially in order to give thanks or to ask for something