Disabled Indonesians fight for rights

Christina Schott, Contributor, Jakarta

Getting away from the traffic-clogged streets of Jakarta to visit Niken's house in Depok on the outskirts of Jakarta is like a perfect idyll: Visitors enter a garden with colorful flowers, the calming sound of flowing water and some chickens clucking in the background.

But there is something else very special here: you will nowhere find a step or a stair -- for Niken Basuki is confined to a wheelchair.

The 32-year-old woman has not always been handicapped. Her suffering started in 1992, when an inoperable growth was found in her back, which led slowly to the total paralysis of her legs.

"Before, I never seriously thought about the problems of handicapped people", Niken says. "I often thought about the bad condition of the sidewalks in Jakarta since I had studied urban planning. But I never imagined how difficult accessibility could be in Indonesia if you are disabled."

Receiving her first treatment in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where the facilities for handicapped people are quite advanced, Niken very soon had to face the reality of confinement to a wheelchair when she came back to Indonesia. Simply visiting a supermarket became a nightmare, and at her university they had to build special facilities so that she could continue her studies.

"But I'm still lucky", Niken says. "I have a family which lovingly supports me. I can pay for my treatment to a certain extent and our house can be rebuilt according to my needs. Most disabled people in Indonesia are in a much worse situation."

Unfortunately this is a fact. Visiting most public buildings in Indonesia, like schools, offices or shopping malls, is almost impossible for handicapped people. Partly resulting from this, it is extremely difficult for them to access normal education or the job market, let alone try to take out health insurance.

"Being disabled in Indonesia means always being on your own", says Siswadi, the president of the Indonesian Association of the Disabled (PPCI). "Nobody takes responsibility for your problems -- you have to arrange and to pay all by yourself."

The PPCI was founded in 1987 as an umbrella organization for 18 member associations representing people with all kinds of disabilities, such as blindness, deafness and mental disability.

Since that time, the PPCI has become the coordinator, consultant and advocate in respect of all the concerns of its members -- whether in official talks with the government, in national campaigns or in undertaking international cooperation.

The vision and the aim of the PPCI is nothing less than reaching a situation where there is equality of opportunities and full participation for Indonesian disabled people in all aspects of life, and to fight for a society that cares for its handicapped members.

"Up until now disabled people are often not accepted as equal human beings in Indonesian society", Siswadi says. "Especially in the rural areas they are still hidden, treated like animals or left alone by their families who are ashamed about what they think is a curse or a punishment by God."

When Siswadi lost his right arm in a car crash, he was 25 and already running his own real estate business. "First it was difficult to accept my fate", he says, "but now I see it as a mission from God to help other people by promoting awareness of their problems in public."

His latest success has been the confirmation by the government that special facilities for handicapped people will be provided all over the country during the general election in 2004. This means that around 10 percent of the Indonesian population (according to 2002 WHO statistics) will have the possibility of voting for the first time in their lives.

"It doesn't matter which belief you adhere to, in every religion all people are supposed to be equal in front of their God. But we forget too often about the disabled in this country", says Cecep Effendi, rector of the Islamic University (UNISMA) in Bekasi, who recently became a member of the PPCI.

Consequently, Effendi wants to improve the awareness and knowledge of his students about handicapped people -- not only by building new facilities for disabled students, but also by sending some of his students to schools for handicapped pupils to experience their specific educational needs.

"Indonesia is still a developing country as regards disabled people. We want to set a good example so that others may be influenced and follow our lead," Effendi says.

Despite all the difficulties, some changes can already be seen. While the PPCI ten years ago mainly had to deal with charity issues, they can nowadays argue about human rights. There are some new laws which favor the disabled, including laws concerning health treatment and the access to the job market. But there is still a long way to go for disabled people's organizations in Indonesia.

Paralyzed Niken summarized the problems in her hope for the future: "I will only feel equal when people on the street don't stare any more at me like I was an Alien, when I can get around without problems and when I finally can work in the job I trained in -- planning good urban facilities for everybody."

* The PPCI can be reached via e-mail at pkms2001@hotmail.com * Niken Basuki, who runs a creative studio for handmade recycled paper products, can be contacted at crie48@infoasia.net.id