'Ghosts' scare Indonesians indoors and away from coronavirus

FILE PHOTO: Volunteers Deri Setyawan, 25, and Septian Febriyanto, 26, sit on a bench as they play the role of 'pocong', or known as 'shroud ghost', to make people stay at home amid the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), outside the gate of Kepuh village in Sukoharjo regency, Central Java province, Indonesia, April 1, 2020. Picture taken April 1, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.

KEPUH, Indonesia (Reuters) - Kepuh village in Indonesia has been haunted by ghosts recently – mysterious white figures jumping out at unsuspecting passersby, then gliding off under a full-moon sky.

The village on Java island has deployed a cast of "ghosts" to patrol the streets, hoping that age-old superstition will keep people indoors and safely away from the coronavirus.