RI under threat of 'lost generation'<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Her name, Sasih, in Sundanese means 'month'.
\nOver the past 14 years, Sasih has given birth to five children
\n-- two boys and three girls -- with the youngest being barely two
\nyears old.<\/p>\n
Along with husband Kadmira, a bajaj driver, the family of
\nseven occupies a two-meter by two-meter rented room in a slum
\ncorner of Pejompongan, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Sasih said that having five children was a headache,
\nfinancially and emotionally. Kadmira only earns Rp 30,000 daily,
\nwhile she gets at most Rp 40,000 from selling steamed corn at a
\nnearby low-income apartment complex.<\/p>\n
Most of her pregnancies were unplanned, she said, and she had
\nnot used contraception.<\/p>\n
\"I took pills but they made me nauseous and dizzy. I tried
\ninjected contraceptive, but I bled the whole month. So, I stopped
\nboth,\" she told The Jakarta Post on Monday.<\/p>\n
Jamu herbal drinks were ineffective, while Sasih did not dare
\nto try an intra-uterine device (IUD), despite a doctor's
\nrecommendation that this was the most effective, long-term
\ncontraceptive.<\/p>\n
\"I think I'm going to try an implant. But it costs Rp 75,000,\"
\nshe said.<\/p>\n
As the world's fourth most populous nation, Indonesia has long
\nstruggled to reduce its birth rate. Back in the period of the
\nSoeharto regime, family planning was forced by the government,
\nwith the slogan \"two children are enough\".<\/p>\n
It was later criticized, however, for not respecting women's
\nreproductive rights.<\/p>\n
The total fertility rate indeed declined from 5.6 in the 1970s
\nto 3.02 in 1991 and 2.6 in 2003.<\/p>\n
Yet, couples like Sasih and Kadmira, who live in poverty,
\ncontinue to have more than three children.<\/p>\n
It raises concern over the increase in the 36.1 million people
\ncurrently living in poverty, which may result in a lost
\ngeneration.<\/p>\n
The head of the National Family Planning Coordination Board
\n(BKKBN), Sumarjati Arjoso, said contraceptive users among poor
\nfamilies only numbered 52.4 percent, while among the non-poor
\npopulation the rate was 62.4 percent. The unwanted pregnancy
\nrate, meanwhile, was 17 percent.<\/p>\n
\"It's not in line with the program of making pregnancy safer,\"
\nSumarjati said, pointing to the alarming mortality rate of 307
\ndeaths per 100,000 births, which was the highest in Southeast
\nAsia.<\/p>\n
She said the problems of family planning were rooted in a
\ncombination of lack of education and information, as well as
\ngeography and even corruption.<\/p>\n
\"Over 90 percent of people understand the concept of family
\nplanning and contraception, but (the understanding is) still
\nsuperficial,\" she told reporters on Monday on the sidelines of a
\nnational meeting on family planning.<\/p>\n
Most poor families prefer pills and injections, even though
\nthe longevity of these contraceptives was short -- unlike IUDs
\nthat can be used for up to 10 years -- and this factor increased
\nthe risk of unwanted pregnancy.<\/p>\n
Implants are effective within three years, but are quite
\nexpensive. And male contraceptives seem to be out of the question
\nin this strongly patriarchal society.<\/p>\n
The quality of services have yet to be standardized, Sumarjati
\nsaid, with infrastructure in many regions, particularly in rural
\nareas, not available or inadequate.<\/p>\n
Nor are many health offices informed that civil servants'
\nhealth insurance (ASKES) also includes contraceptives. Worse
\nstill, contraceptives are supposed to be free, but many health
\nworkers charge for them, as confirmed by Sasih, who had to pay Rp
\n15,000 for injected contraceptive while pills cost Rp 5,000 per
\nstrip.<\/p>\n
\"Contraceptives are not the same as medicines for illness.
\nWhen people get sick, they will pay to be cured. But when you
\nhave to pay to get contraceptives, people will back out,\"
\nSumarjati said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-under-threat-of-lost-generation-1447893297",
"image": ""
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