One Child’s Hunger Just Tip of the Iceberg of Indonesian Malnutrition
Jakarta Globe, March 14, 2010
Cikarang, West Java. Eight months ago, 7-year-old Puji began a battle with acute malnutrition, a condition that her family’s poverty makes nearly impossible to address. She now weighs just 10 kilograms, less than half the average healthy weight for her age, according to a growth chart from the US-based National Center for Health.
“Now she cannot even digest food normally,” her father, Suryadi, 26, said during an interview at the family’s house in the village of Jati Mulya in Bekasi, West Java, on Saturday.
Suryadi said he was deeply concerned about his daughter’s condition. Puji appeared to be weak and had difficulty moving as she remained on her bed.
He said Puji’s mother, Liah, 26, would spend hours feeding her daughter daily with porridge and powdered milk.
He said despite the child’s dire condition, they lacked the funds needed to pay for medical care.
Liah said she and her husband work as vegetable vendors, earning between Rp 50,000 ($5.45) and Rp 100,000 on their busiest days — not nearly enough for a hospital stay.
Ropi, the head of Jati Mulya, said he had provided the family with an official letter confirming their low-income status for hospital discounts, and promised to pay for Puji’s treatment at the Bekasi Public Hospital.
According to World Vision Indonesia, a nongovernmental organization tackling malnutrition, Puji is just one of more than five million Indonesian children suffering from malnutrition.
The group calls it an “iceberg phenomenon,” meaning the actual number of malnourished children is much higher than treatment statistics indicate.
Antara
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