"Vaccines Must Also Obtain 'Halal' Certification"... Indonesia Delays Inoculation with China's Sinovac Vaccine

Sinovac, "No Pig-Derived Ingredients Included" Rebuttal
"No Need to Worry About Halal" ... President Widodo Appeals for Approval
Health Authorities Hope for Decision Before the 13th

On the 6th (local time), workers at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, are unloading containers of the Chinese Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine from the airplane cargo hold. Indonesia procured 3 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine last month, but vaccinations have been delayed as they await confirmation of the vaccine's halal status. Jakarta (Indonesia) = AP·Yonhap [Image source = Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Tae-min] Vaccinations in Indonesia are being delayed until a 'halal' certification, which determines whether the COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac contains pig-derived ingredients, is issued, major foreign media including The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 6th (local time).

According to the NYT on the same day, Sinovac sent a letter to Indonesia in July stating that "no pig-derived ingredients were used" in the vaccine, but the Islamic clerical body, the Ulema Council (MUI), is still reviewing the halal certification status of the vaccine. The Ulema Council stated, "We hope to make a decision before the scheduled vaccination start date of the 13th of this month."

Generally, vaccines widely use gelatin derived from pigs to prevent spoilage during storage and transportation. In Indonesia, halal is considered the next most important factor after vaccine safety, efficacy, and quality.

In contrast, other Islamic countries such as Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates have ruled that vaccination can be allowed even if gelatin is included.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo appealed, "There is no need to worry about whether this vaccine is halal," adding, "We are in an emergency situation due to COVID-19." President Widodo said he would be the first to get vaccinated to show that there is nothing to worry about.

Indonesia's health authorities procured 3 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Sinovac last month and began transporting the vaccine to hospitals and health centers nationwide starting from the 3rd.

When a measles outbreak occurred in Indonesia in 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) provided vaccines, but controversy arose when pig-derived ingredients were found in the supplied vaccines. In response, the Ulema Council only permitted the use of the vaccine in emergency situations, but some local Islamic leaders opposed the vaccine use, resulting in a vaccination rate of 72%, which was far below the target of 95%.

Indonesia currently has about 780,000 cumulative confirmed cases, the highest in Southeast Asia. Among them, the cumulative death toll is 23,000.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.