People still live in misery

People still live in misery

Indonesia has been an independent nation for 50 years, and it
is said that the development is enormously successful with the
Gross Domestic Product reaching on average US$900 per capita (an
increase of seven percent is expected annually). But who is
benefiting from this achievement? The low-income people
(laborers, civil servants, farmers, students, pensioners, small-
scale businessmen, etc.) find life harder and harder. These
people are mostly on fixed salaries, which is enough for them to
survive for 15 days, continuing to face the challenge of price
increases of all basic necessities such as rice, sugar, cooking
oil, flour, meat, lubricating oil, electricity, cement, building
materials, textiles, etc. While the salaries of civil servants,
pensioners and armed forces members have increased only 10
percent. How do these low-income people address their problems of
day to day life? They have their own ways to solve their
household demands -- by fair or foul?

All public services: obtaining birth certificates, renewing
identity cards, arranging a driver's license, getting children
enrolled in school, you name it, costs extra.

On the other hand, we can witness an elite group in the
community continuing to enjoy the privileges of being affluent.
The people of this group live in big mansions, possess luxurious
cars and, in fact, live immensely prosperous lives.

The majority of the people are less fortunate and continue to
live in misery, with uncertain futures and can do nothing about
it but accept the reality.

The national discipline movement does not seem to touch the
people (officials) of higher echelon, because formally they seem
never to have violated disciplinary principles. In fact, they
should set a good example to the community.

SUHARSONO HADIKUSUMO

Jakarta