The tragedy of the impoverished

The tragedy of the impoverished

What is the fate of poor people in Indonesia? A friend of mine
has the answer. According to him, grass in Indonesia is much more
respected than poor people. How is that? Well, we can see
everywhere announcements saying "Do not step on the grass". We
seldom see "Do not step on poor people".

Indonesia is an amazingly confused country, The five basic
principles known as Pancasila, say that all people in Indonesia
should benefit. The Constitution tells us more clearly that the
poor should be protected by the state. Theory is one thing, while
practice is another thing. What we see quite often is not
consistent with the theory. Poor people are always trampled upon.

Take the fuel price hike, which started on March 1. It does
not mean that if fuel prices go up, the rich people will be
pained. In fact, the poor people will suffer the most. Why is
that? Poor people are characterized by low incomes with a big
proportion of their budgets for food. The rich people are simply
the other way around. Their income is quite high with a small
proportion on food and basic needs expenditures.

Therefore, rich people will have plenty of room to maneuver
and will not feel the price increases. They would probably just
cut back a tad on using the mobile phone, Internet, etc, while
keep their consumption pattern of food as usual.

The poor people do not have such a luxury. Their ability to
maneuver is limited or does not exist. Following fuel price
hikes, they will face inflation, which eventually reduces their
purchasing power. Food prices are now beyond their income. They
need more money to make food more affordable. Their children will
have to drop out of school and get in fight on the streets, or
become street musicians or street newspaper sellers.

BARLEV NICO, Brussel, Belgium