Lack of surgery on twins protested

JAKARTA: The parents of conjoined twins Angie and Angeli filed a complaint with the Ministry of Health on Thursday over the cancellation of the surgery to separate the two girls.

The twins are joined from the waist down, with one kidney each and separate digestive systems. They share a bowel and a third leg.

Subari and his wife Neng Harmaini said doctors at Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, Central Jakarta, had repeatedly delayed the surgery, forcing the residents of Simalungun district, North Sumatra, to remain in the capital for 11 months.

The girls were taken to the hospital 20 days after they were born.

"We've waited a long time. Several months ago the doctors said we had to wait until each twin weighed 10 kilograms, but now, they say the surgery would put their lives at risk and they canceled it," Subari told minister Fadillah Supari.

The couple has decided to return home to their oldest daughter with the twins. -- JP