Targeting imbalance<\/p>\n
In one tsunami-devastated area of Aceh, a visitor asked a medical
\nteam, "Where are the midwives?" There were none, while only a few
\nweeks after last December's tragedy, an official with the United
\nNations Population Fund revealed that at least 800 births were at
\nrisk. Many of the midwives had of course become victims
\nthemselves and apparently no one had told the volunteers of the
\npossibility of a woman approaching her time of labor.<\/p>\n
This was an area of unprecedented disaster. But whether in
\nNanggroe Aceh Darussalam or other relatively safer areas, on
\nevery national commemoration of Women's Day we are reminded of
\nthe huge task ahead of us when it comes to proving that we care
\nfor all humans, men and women.<\/p>\n
Our maternal mortality rate is still 380 women for every
\n100,000 live births, mainly due to late access to urgent services
\nneeded at time of labor. And compared to the year 2000 when we
\nhad barely 63,000 midwives across the nation, or 71 for every
\n100,000 women of reproductive age, the figure has now dropped to
\nabout half that to just under 40,000.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in Indonesia the number of people living on less
\nthan a dollar a day has been estimated at 62 million people.<\/p>\n
In such a situation how could the country even begin the task
\nof achieving "the Millenium Development Goals" to, for example,
\nhalve the number of those living on less than a dollar a day, or
\nreduce by three quarters the number of women dying in the
\nseemingly mundane act of giving birth, all in the next 10 years?<\/p>\n
Apart from "expecting 71 midwives to work day and night", last
\nyear's budget at regional levels showed that "regents don't want
\nto pay for midwives" to replace those who have sought work in
\nbetter paying areas, said Meiwita Budiharsana, an expert in
\nreproductive health. Further, latest official figures put the
\nnumber of illiterate women over 15-years-old at 45 percent,
\nalmost double the figure for men at 23 percent.<\/p>\n
To overcome this clear neglect of women one would expect a
\nhigher commitment from the government. But with less than 10
\npercent alloted for education and under 7 percent for health in
\nnext year's budget, juggling available funds to reduce
\ndiscrimination 60 years after independence would be a tall order.<\/p>\n
Yet there is a great opportunity in this era of regional
\nautonomy to employ ingenious ways to use what is at hand for
\nthose in need. Education in the poor Jembrana regency in Bali,
\nfor instance, is free; thus parents need not make the traditional
\ndecision to put aside precious funds only for their son's
\nschooling. In the absence of commands from Jakarta and with all
\nthe campaigns for good governance and "gender sensitivity", the
\nexcuse this time to neglect women's needs would likely be
\nignorance or greedy willfulness to use and abuse resources.<\/p>\n
So who would be in the best position to argue for better
\nallocation of resources? The few figures cited above provide a
\nclue as to the sheer neglect of half of our human population --
\nthus we naturally support those advocating for more women in
\ndecision-making positions.<\/p>\n
We could take inspiration from Papua, a province many think of
\nas "backward". While its regional legislatures are 90 percent
\nmen, the new Papuan People's Council (MRP) has 15 women out of 42
\nmembers -- or more than the 30 percent share campaigned for by
\nadvocates of affirmative action.<\/p>\n
It's just about making possible realistic ways to prevent the
\nlikely waste in terms of futile policies and budget
\nmisallocations that result from listening to the wrong people:
\nPut women in strategic positions, in addition to educating both
\nwomen and men about existing differences in society.<\/p>\n
In Aceh, the government and scores of local and foreign Good
\nSamaritans are learning the hard way about preventing the waste
\nof the generous aid that has come from across the globe. Let's
\nnot wait for another tragedy of last year's horrific proportions
\nmerely to learn how to best use available resources, especially
\nwhen they are so scarce.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/targeting-imbalance-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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