The pandemic has a new epicenter, with Indonesia taking the lead in the dismal COVID-19 stakes after a recent streak of 50,000 infections a day.
The surge in the world’s fourth-most populous country is being accompanied by what are now tragically familiar stories. Hospitals are short of life-saving oxygen and drugs and people are dying alone, their loved ones absent or behind protective screens. Indonesia is seeing more than 1,000 virus fatalities every day.
Across the world in the U.K., however, 50,000 cases has an entirely different impact. The nation eased a raft of pandemic restrictions on July 19, dubbed "Freedom Day” by the local press. Revelers jammed nightclubs for the first time in months, commuters can ride the train mask-free and diners are eating out without seating and capacity limits. Despite the jump in infections, around 50 people are dying each day.