new zealand family stuck in bali say its good to be here but

Amy Montagu, her partner John de Monchy with their 3 sons relocated to Bali last year. They have now made several attempts to return to their home however have been unsuccessful due to flight cancellations and at the same time unable to get the passports of their sons as they are at the moment being held by the local authorities while waiting for the new visas.

The only flight available for them was via doha and that cost double in price. "That made the decision for us that we had to stay here. We'll probably just hunker down... and hope that it's all okay."

Montagu works as a clinical psychologist in Indonesia however it has been upended as Indonesia went for the lock down shutting down the local businesses to flatten and control the covid-19 spread. While Bali officials had opted for a full lock down and encouraged everyone to stay at home it didn't seem to be enforced heavily.

It's not like a full lockdown because I think the risk of doing that would create civil unrest and there are no welfare packages for the local community."

Religious ceremonies are still attracting a large number of people despite the plea from local authorities she said. 

"The other day I saw heaps of people on the road wearing masks, but no social distancing."

Benny the youngest son of Montagu they both had a plan to return to Auckland on March 16 for a medical appointment but they had to reschedule as New Zealand government brought in the two-week self isolation requirement, which meant he would have missed it.

 Flights were cancelled by Emirates then, Bali faced the lock down with streets and beaches going empty so even after trying they failed to go back home. 

"There is one flight that goes to Auckland but it's ridiculously expensive and we haven't got full refunds from Emirates yet."

They decided to wait out the pandemic in Bali, she said.

"I feel right now its a good place to be. But if there were any concerns over health for any of us, that would be scary because the health system here is not great."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that 72 New Zealand nationals registered on Safetravel as being in Bali. 

"Registration is voluntary, so these numbers do not represent the total number of New Zealanders in a country," a spokesperson said.

"Two New Zealanders in Bali have contacted MFAT to discuss their options. Commercial flights remain the most viable option for New Zealanders in Bali to return home, and MFAT strongly recommends that New Zealanders take up these options while they remain available.