Several days ago, in process to got sleepy (cause I am suffering insomnia), I checked my email and I have no idea to search certain info but suddenly my altruism character arise (within the light cross in window of my room, like movie scene ^_^). I try to type “Poverty in Indonesia” in Google search engine and the result was surprisingly. This issue was well known in our lovely earth (doesn’t it?), then I don’t know what should I think about it? herewith I enclose one of my midnight search treasures, an article from The Economist, September 14th 2006:

The Indonesian economy is growing. But so, unfortunately, is poverty

“WHEN two scavengers died last week under a landslide at Jakarta’s main rubbish dump, the extensive television coverage that resulted provided a too-rare glimpse into the plight of some of Indonesia’s poorest people. And their ranks are swelling. After declining for six years the number of poor people has increased sharply. Some 39m, 18% of the population of 220m, are now officially poor, according to data just released by the government’s statistics bureau, 4m more than in 2005.

That the poverty level has stopped falling is no surprise. A 126% increase in fuel prices last October catapulted inflation to 18%, while wages increased only marginally. The number of poor Indonesians would have soared even more, to 51m according to the statistics office, if the government had not given cash handouts to some 76m people to cushion the effects of the fuel-price increase (which eliminated a costly subsidy). But activists are questioning the data. They argue that the figures fail to give the full alarming picture.

The Urban Poor Consortium believes, for example, that the number of people falling into poverty in Jakarta has risen by almost twice as much as the statisticians state. It also says that more people are, relatively speaking, even poorer than they were a year ago. Numerous academics echo their claims. This is partly because the government’s definition of poverty—less money than is needed to afford a diet of 2,100 calories a day—is 152,847 rupiah ($16.80) a month. This measure is well below the more widely used benchmark of $1 a day. Using the $1-a-day measure, it is estimated that more than 80m Indonesians are in poverty”.

Now, two years after that news was published, SBY announced that the level of poverty in Indonesia has decreased. Most people are disagree (of course, supporters of Democratic Party were not counted). As a good citizen, who hold tight the three fundamental things to love (God, Nation, and Almamater) although I’m absolutely not belong to Edy Baskoro party, I can conclude that SBY was correct. Am I normal? (hey, I can hear some of you said that). I have no other reason to not believe what YBS said. Poor peoples who record statistically on year before, right now, must be Rest In Peace or have died due to their disability face this high cost life. They have losing, lost, and stop. No more opportunities they can took to earn money, bought good food (even under standard food), arise their children, and live well.

Ugh, I can’t imagine what will Indonesia be in a future? Well I predict like Coldplay said “When the future architectured by a carnival of Idiot on show” so the next president must be “a captain of sinking ship”. But wait, the captain will not sink below, he/she and his/her family have prepare the tools they need to save their life. In my scenario, I can describe the scene “The captain family successfully reach the land and they yelling for their success, while the ship passangers sink more deeply in sea”. Wow, I think I have to try arrange speech for my Oscar award from now on.