The weak worst hit by crisis<\/p>\n
By Solita Sarwono<\/p>\n
WASSENAR, the Netherlands (JP): The economic crisis hitting
\nIndonesia in the past year has affected different aspects of
\npeople's lives -- income, jobs, education, health, housing and
\nsecurity -- with the poor and low-income groups suffering the
\nmost.<\/p>\n
Immediate effects can be seen in the drastic shortage of food
\nsupplies, as well as increases in unemployment, crime rates and
\nthe number of children forced to leave school.<\/p>\n
It is heartbreaking to read press reports of two small
\nchildren crying from hunger in a village in West Java as their
\nmother cooked water and a stone in a pot, or that a few poor
\nfarmers gave away their children to other families because they
\ncould no longer afford to keep them.<\/p>\n
In the long term, the crisis will also affect people's health.
\nGovernment subsidies for health services and medical supplies, a
\nmajor factor in the improvement of the public health status in
\nthe past decade, have been severely cut.<\/p>\n
As a result, health services and medicines have become
\nunaffordable for low-income people and preventive care will
\ninevitably be neglected. Diseases will be left untreated, leading
\nto a higher mortality rate.<\/p>\n
Many people are turning to the help of traditional healers and
\nbirth attendants, with fees much lower than conventional medical
\npersonnel. Given the often poor hygiene and improper practices of
\nthe healers, the alternative care may also cause more deaths.<\/p>\n
In addition, the shortage in the food supply will cause
\nnutritional problems, particularly among babies, children,
\npregnant women and the aged. Malnutrition among young children
\nwill disturb development of their intellectual capacity, which in
\nturn will produce low-quality human resources.<\/p>\n
Although the crisis is a problem for the entire nation, the
\nbiggest burden falls on the shoulders of women as the key figures
\nand pillars of families. As wives and mothers, Indonesian women
\nhave the responsibility of taking care of the health and welfare
\nof their husbands and children, maintaining social contacts with
\nrelatives and friends as well as generating income.<\/p>\n
In most households, with the exception of a small group of the
\nrich, the family budget is declining sharply due to the crisis.
\nMillions of families have even lost their income since their
\nbreadwinners have been laid off or dismissed by their employers.<\/p>\n
Naturally, the wives have to adjust and cut the monthly
\nhousehold expenses. They have to reassess the family outlays and
\ndecide which should be trimmed. They will make a list of
\npriorities and think first of the needs of their children and
\nhusbands, putting their own in last importance.<\/p>\n
Protecting and sacrificing for the family is a normal maternal
\ninstinct, manifested each time the wives feel a threat to their
\nfamilies. However, this unselfish attitude can cost them their
\nhealth. Lack of food, poor nutrition and harder work is gradually
\ndestroying their physical well-being. On top of that, wives are
\nunder extra stress, as they often become the husbands' object of
\nfrustration and anger, which are escalating nowadays.<\/p>\n
The role of a mother has become more difficult, too. All
\nmothers want to give their children the best care and education.
\nThey hope to see their children obtain a better life and reach
\nhigher status than their own. It is thus very sad and frustrating
\nfor mothers when they are forced by this turmoil to end their
\nchildren's education.<\/p>\n
As many as eight million children have been unable to continue
\ntheir primary and secondary education in the past few months.
\nThis is a huge increase from the annual average of dropouts,
\nestimated at 2.5 million by the Central Bureau of Statistics. It
\nis easy to assume that the majority of the dropouts are girls.<\/p>\n
To provide better living conditions and education for
\nchildren, millions of mothers in Indonesia have been able to
\nlimit the number of children with the help of contraception.<\/p>\n
The slogan \"two children is enough\" for family planning
\ncampaigns seems to have been internalized in the minds of young
\nwomen. Continuous information and persuasion by the government
\nand private institutions have made young women aware of the
\nimportance of education and good health in raising children. But
\nthat costs money, and young women currently prefer to have fewer
\nchildren.<\/p>\n
In order to promote family planning programs, the government
\nhas provided subsidies for family planning services, including
\ncontraceptives. But the situation has changed now. Lack of
\nfunding has forced the government to cut its subsidies. Prices of
\ncontraceptive pills and injectables have become unaffordable to
\nlow-income families.<\/p>\n
The situation has forced some women to resort to traditional
\ncontraceptive methods, such as using herbal medicine and the
\nrhythm method. These measures seldom work. As a result, the
\nnumber of pregnancies will significantly increase in the coming
\nmonths, to be followed by an increase in the abortion rate or a
\nbaby boom in the near future.<\/p>\n
With the increased costs of medical care, the cost of abortion
\nby licensed doctors has become too expensive for members of the
\nlow-income group, forcing them to turn to back-street
\npractitioners and traditional birth attendants. Experience shows
\nthese practices lead to high maternal mortality.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, keeping the pregnancy also brings its
\nnegative consequences. Deliveries assisted by traditional birth
\nattendants increase the risk of death for both mothers and
\nbabies. When a baby is born safely, it may not get proper
\nnutrition, which is crucial for its physical and mental
\ndevelopment. And if the child does survive infancy, it will
\nprobably get only a few years of schooling or none at all.<\/p>\n
In the long run, Indonesia is expecting a \"crippled\"
\ngeneration -- people with low education and in poor health.<\/p>\n
Moreover, frequent pregnancies and births, worsened by poor
\nnutrition, will weaken women's health and may even cause their
\ndeath, leaving the families in poor care.<\/p>\n
Women suffer the most in this turmoil. During the mid-May
\nriots, some were reportedly raped and murdered; and the recession
\nhas made them cry in hunger and worry about the future of their
\nchildren. Those who voiced their concern for the children were
\nput in jail.<\/p>\n
Some may think that this whole issue is blown up out of
\nproportion because they do not see it happening in their
\nimmediate surroundings. But if they give a closer look at people
\nthey meet in the street or marketplaces and have a chat with
\nthem, they will see how real the problem is.<\/p>\n
The economic recession has been going on for more than one
\nyear now and it is high time for the authorities, decision-makers
\nand everyone else who cares to take action and help brighten this
\ngloomy picture. When the health of poor women and children, which
\nform the half of the population, is at stake, the future of this
\nnation is indeed gloomy.<\/p>\n
We must save the women and children because the future of the
\nnation depends on them. The privileged must be grateful and not
\nbe selfish.<\/p>\n
Let us pool our resources and give our support to the needy.
\nTalking only and feeling pity for the poor will not help. Let us
\ntry to cut short the red tape of bureaucracy and thus limit the
\nchance for corruption or misuse of the power. Do not wait for too
\nlong. We do not want to see our nation collapse.<\/p>\n
The writer is a psychologist, sociologist and health educator
\nin the Netherlands.<\/p>",
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