Sustainable Development Goals Essay

Tentani Buhti Amadea (140410170098)

Febriana Dwi Lestari (200110170158)

WHY POVERTY IS AN ACT OF LAW VIOLATION IN INDONESIA

As we all know, poverty has been a big problem for Indonesia since long time ago. According

to Asian Development Bank (ADB), the number of citizens of Indonesia on 2015 is 255.46

million and 11,2% of them has been living under the national poverty standard. The standard

was set at the average expenditure of Rp302.735 per capita per month or about Rp10.000 per

day.

“Social Justice for all Indonesian people” stated as the fifth principle of Pancasila, the ideology

of Indonesia. Social justice means that all of the people in Indonesia should have the same level

in every sector, including economically, to build a nation with prosperity and justice. How

devastating it truly is to connect this principle with the reality that Indonesia has to face.

Poverty also contradicts the human rights. As stated by the Universal Declaration of Human

Rights, article 25 verse 1, “Everyone is entitled to a level of living that guarantees good health

and well-being for himself and his family, including about food, clothing, housing, health care,

as well as necessary social efforts, and is entitled to security in times of unemployment,

widows, or suffer from other deficiencies because of circumstances beyond his control.”.

Indonesia also stated in its constitution, article 34 that:

1. The poor and the abandoned children are kept by the state.

2. The State develops a social security system for all people and empowers a weak and

incapable society in accordance with human dignity.

3. The State is responsible for the provision of appropriate health service facilities and public

service facilities.

4. Further provisions concerning the implementation of this article shall be governed by law.

From these statements of the constitution, we can conclude that poverty has against the

constitution and the right to be freed from poverty is the governments’ responsibility to solve.

The government should not just support them financially but also educate them, so that they

can find jobs and live better. The government also has to protect them from the effects of

possible inability to cope with economic shocks.

And of course, without the help of the citizens themselves, this issue won’t ever be solve. As a

social creature, it is also our responsibility to fully support the government’s programs to solve

poverty.