Sympathy for Guruh Ekis

From Kompas

I would like to express my deepest sympathy regarding the death of 13-year-old Guruh Ekis, who drowned in a swimming pool, as reported by Kompas on Aug. 24, 1995. I don't know Guruh or his family, but I am sorry and hope this will never happen again.

We tend to regard drownings as accidents. We are too lazy to question who is responsible and why it happens so often.

I have long been concerned about the condition of swimming pools in Indonesia. Almost all of them are more than two meters or even three meters deep. This is dangerous, even for adult swimmers since we can suffer a cramp anytime.

I lived in Japan for seven years and learned how they respect human life by implementing high safety standards. I never found a swimming pool more than 1.55 meters deep, except diving pools.

Japanese swimming pools are deep enough for those who want to swim. The pools are divided in two by a rope. One part is for adults and the other is for children. The kiddie pools are shallow and people put blocks on the bottom of the pools. This is very practical so pools with different depths for adults and for children don't have to be built.

More importantly, professional lifeguards are always on duty to keep an eye on the swimmers. The water must be clean so the bottom of the pool can be seen. Once and awhile (for example 25 minutes), the pool is emptied of swimmers to allow the guards to check the bottom.

The managers of swimming pools in Indonesia should pay attention to the safety of the swimmers. My suggestions might sound theoretical, but we have to start thinking about safety.

ARIF B.

Jakarta