PRESIDENT HOLDS COORDINATING MEETING ON ECONOMY, SECURITY AND EL NINO

Jakarta, July 31 (ANTARA) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the State Palace on Thursday held a coordination meeting by teleconference with the governors, military and police chiefs across Indonesia to discuss the economic and security situation, as well as preparations in facing the El Nino threat.

"We will discuss joint efforts which have to be taken in the current global crisis, in maintaining and promoting national security which include preventing and overcoming terrorism, and anticipative measures in facing the El Nino," Yudhoyono, who said that he has yet to fully recover from a flu.

On the occasion the Head of State issued instructions and provided directives and guidance with regard to economic recovery and the security situation, then later gave an opportunity for the Head of the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency to brief the audience on the El Nino threat.

During the 1.5 hours teleconference the Head of State was in the company of Minister of Trade Mari Pangestu, Minister/State Secretary Hatta Rajasa, Minister of Home Affairs Mardiyanto, Minister of Social Affairs Bachtiar Chamsyah, Minister of Industry Fahmi Idris, and Minister of Communications and Information M. Nuh.

Prior to giving directives and guidance, the President first of all gave three reasons that this time the coordinating meeting was held by teleconference and not face to face in Jakarta like usual, namely the intensive preoccupation of the governors in maintaining post-genenal elections security and political situation, and performing their daily routine tasks and activities, and their plan to come to Jakarta at the time the President delivered his financial note on August 3, 2009.

The Head of State also said a coordination meeting by way of teleconference will save state finances.

H1N1 virus

Unlike the previous occasions, on that Thursday afternoon every guest about to step into the State Palace complex must go through a body search and inspection and an examination of the goods and objects a person is carrying.

The search and examination are carried out by a team of the Disease and Environmental Sanitation Control Directorate General of the Ministry of Health in anticipation of the spread of the influenza-A (H1N1) better known as swine flu virus.

The ministry of health has earlier announced that up to Wednesday (Jul 29), the number of people infected with the swine flu had reached 444 throughout Indonesia, and one of them had succumbed.

The disease has now spread to 15 provinces Bali, Banten, Yogyakarta, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Java, South Kalimantan, Riau Islands, North Sulawesi, South Sumatra, North Sumatra, East Kalimantan, South Sulawesi and Jambi.

While in some serious cases the disease caused eventual death, but globally the death rate caused by H1N1 was low, only o.4 percent.