Indonesia confirms first cases of coronavirus, link to Japanese visitor (update)

Commuters wearing protective masks as they wait for a commuter train at a station in Jakarta. Two Indonesians have tested positive for coronavirus after coming into contact with an infected Japanese national, President Joko Widodo said on Monday (March 2), marking the first confirmed cases in the world's fourth-most populous country. - Reuters

JAKARTA: Two Indonesians have tested positive for coronavirus after coming into contact with an infected Japanese national, President Joko Widodo said on Monday (March 2), marking the first confirmed cases in the world's fourth-most populous country.

The discovery comes after some medical experts had raised concerns about a lack of vigilance and a risk of undetected cases in the South-East Asian country of more than 260 million people, while authorities have defended screening processes.