Poverty, a national shame

The Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) announced on Friday that there were 49.5 million poor Indonesians, or 24.2 percent of the 202 million population, at the end of 1998. It based its findings on a survey of the impact of the economic crisis which was conducted in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program and the United Nations Support Facility for Indonesian Recovery (UNSFIR).

The figure surprised many because BPS announced in mid-1998 that the number of Indonesians living below the poverty line was 79.4 million, or 39.1 percent of the population. BPS chief Sugito Suwito was quick to explain that the previous calculation was made in the shadow of dark macroeconomic and political conditions following president Soeharto's resignation.

Indonesians considered the poorest of the poor in 1998 were those in urban areas with monthly income of Rp 96,959 (US$12), or Rp 72,780 for rural dwellers.

According to the data, 17.6 million poor people lived in urban centers and 31.9 million in rural areas at the end of last year. Since an urban family consists of an average of 4.9 members and a rural one of 4.7 members, their respective households need Rp 475,000 and Rp 342,000 to make ends meet every month.

At the center of this nasty social cycle is the fact that those barely subsisting in urban areas are the very same people who fled the hardships of rural life. Urban centers, especially Jakarta, hold out promise as proverbial places of opportunity and a better life.

Unfortunately, the vast majority find themselves tossed back in the nightmare of fighting to keep their heads above water in the urban whirlpool. The staggering rapidity of urbanization, and the government's failure to offer alternatives, came in tandem with soaring crime and the sprawl of slum districts teeming with disease and desperation.

Many of the rural poor, especially women, also set out to better their lives and the lot of their families by becoming overseas domestic helpers. Ironically, and through no fault of their own, their best efforts have done little to repair this country's tattered reputation in international eyes. Instead, Indonesia has become known as a nation of servants and, weighed down by debt accrued by a morally bankrupt minority, a shameless indentured servant among nations.

Under Soeharto, we also earned the dubious distinction of being one of the poorest nations on the planet but ruled for 32 years by someone many considered one of the world's richest autocrats. As he parceled out development gains in grand shows of largess -- with nobody willing to stand up and tell him the "gifts" rightfully belonged to the people -- this "father of development" and his brood reportedly acquired land like there was no tomorrow. In psychology, it is called kleptomania.

Another ugly ramification of the social gap is that this country is Asia's most corrupt and, save for a couple of sorry regimes in Africa, probably the world. Sadly and shamefully, our poor people are condemned to witness every day our corrupt officials flaunting their ill-gotten assets. Compliance became the rule after 32 years when corruption was king.

Our sorry record on fighting poverty will be among the most challenging tasks to surmount for the next government. Indonesians will witness yet another catastrophe in their turbulent history if no strong, capable administration is in place at the end of the year. A regime built on popular support but lacking a foundation to address the lingering problems from Soeharto is destined to crumble like a house of cards.