House to debate population bill<\/p>\n
Dewi Santoso, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The House of Representatives unanimously agreed on Tuesday to
\ndeliberate the draft revision of Law No. 10\/1992, which seeks a
\njail term and fine for citizens who fail to report a child's
\nbirth or a family member's death.<\/p>\n
Spokesman for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
\n(PDI-P) faction Surya Chandra Surapatty told a House plenary
\nmeeting the punishment was necessary to encourage people to
\nsupport an improvement in the country's population data.<\/p>\n
\"Population is crucial in the development of this country.
\nTherefore, the government needs to maintain systematic population
\nrecords, which will contribute to a strong and orderly nation,\"
\nSurya said in reading out the faction's response to the bill,
\nwhich will replace the existing law.<\/p>\n
He asserted the absence of accurate population records could
\nweaken the country's ability to develop good governance.<\/p>\n
\"Fuel subsidies, for example, could not be distributed
\ndirectly to poor people because there was no accurate data on the
\nnumber of low-income families. The subsidy was distributed via a
\nvariety of sectors, and, as a result, only a small proportion of
\nit reached the needy,\" he said.<\/p>\n
By keeping systematic population records the government will
\nbe able to provide social insurance for those who need it, via
\nsmoother procedures, he said.<\/p>\n
Article 20 of the draft spells out that citizens who fail to
\nreport a birth, death or migration in a family will face a
\nmaximum punishment of six months in jail or a fine of up to Rp 10
\nmillion (US$1,176).<\/p>\n
The National Awakening Party (PKB) faction shared the opinion.
\nReading the faction's response to the bill, its spokesperson,
\nSukiarti M. Karim, said punishment was necessary to raise citizen
\nawareness of the importance of recording population growth
\nproperly.<\/p>\n
The bill, drafted by House legislators, has drawn protest from
\nthe public.<\/p>\n
Wardah Hafidz of the Urban Poor Consortium (UPC) objected to
\narticle 20 of the bill, calling it \"unacceptable and totally
\nridiculous.\"<\/p>\n
\"The article just doesn't make sense. It shows that the
\ngovernment refuses to take responsibility for providing services
\nfor its citizens,\" Wardah told the Post.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Residents Forum (Fakta) Deputy Chairman Tubagus Haryo
\nKarbyanto suggested that the government be more practical on
\nsystematic population recording.<\/p>\n
\"When formulating the draft, the House and government have not
\nseen the reality. The draft may be applicable, but only to
\ncertain places that are well-equipped with recording centers; not
\nto remote areas,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He suggested that instead of demanding that citizens report on
\ntheir children's birth or the death of family members, the
\ngovernment should take the initiative in making records on its
\ncitizens.<\/p>\n
\"Government officials should 'go after the ball,' instead of
\njust sitting in their offices,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/house-to-debate-population-bill-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}