Women-linked issues need serious attention

Women-linked issues need serious attention

JAKARTA (JP): Women activists lamented yesterday the lack of
serious efforts towards overcoming the country's high maternity
mortality rate, gender inequality and reproduction health
problems.

Saparinah Sadli, head of the Women's Studies Program at the
University of Indonesia's Post Graduate School, said programs
which aim to improve the condition of women currently exist, but
in implementation the programs have fallen short of expectation.

For instance medical workers only examine babies, and mothers
are ignored in monthly checkups. "It's never occurred to them
(medical workers) that mothers need the same attention as their
babies," Saparinah told The Jakarta Post.

Earlier, Saparinah had addressed participants of the symposium
on Safe Motherhood. The four-day symposium co-organized by the
Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the United Nations
Children's Fund (Unicef) and the Central Bureau of Statistics
concluded yesterday.

Government officials, women activists, and non-governmental
organizations members attended the symposium.

She praised the government for initiating national children's
welfare campaigns, such as the Oct. 15 anti-polio vaccination
program.

"Unfortunately, there are few programs which directly address
women's issues," Saparinah said.

Women not only need care during pregnancy, but should be given
health education from childhood onwards.

Syamsiah Achmad, a former assistant to the State Minister of
Women's Roles, suggested to the symposium that health education
and reproductive health be taught in schools.

"I don't suggest we teach children about sex, but I want them
to understand the responsibilities of parenthood," Syamsiah said.

Male students should know that women face different health
problems, and they should be well prepared for parenthood, she
said. "They (students) should take equal responsibility for
raising their children and taking care of their families,"
Syamsiah said.

Mely G. Tan, underlined the need for all people, not only
women, to pay more attention to gender sensitive issues.

In some countries women are treated differently from men, even
before they are born. In one country some pregnant women try to
abort their fetus if they know the baby is female.

"Here, we should realize women are also treated differently
because traditionally, men are considered superior," Mely, LIPI's
senior researcher, said.

People give higher priority to educating men and men have
better access to information, she said, adding it will take years
to change this practice.

Fortunately, women are not excluded in data gathering, she
said. Data collected by the Central Bureau of Statistics is very
important in revealing gender inequality.

The 1990 Census shows that of the country's 179,321,641
people, 89,873,406 were women. Some 8 percent of women and 4
percent of men were illiterate, according to census data.

On the political front, 62 Of the 500 members of the House of
representatives are women and "only" 40 of the 500 members of the
People's Consultative Assembly are women.

There are only two women in the 39-member cabinet: State
Minister of Women's Roles Mien Sugandhi and Minister of Social
Services Inten Suweno.

Indonesia ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all
forms of Discrimination Against Women in 1984, as part of the
government's commitment to gender equality. (ste)