Unsurprising Main Cause of Poverty

What do you think about poverty? Do you think of torn clothed beggars, cartoon or bamboo house with sandy floor? Or tiny children with malnutrition? Is that related to a family that can’t afford daily food? Or children who play around the street in big cities at school time? Unsurprisingly, many people assume in that way. If that’s the way it is, then what do you think of its cause? Is it about lack of skill? Uneducated person? Unwilling to work? Or poor assets?

Common people determine economics poverty at the first time. It’s about physical conditions of a person we can easily recognize at our first sight. We can understand this assumption from looking at our daily surroundings. In addition, it is strengthened by the implementation of government’s programs. They have established several programs to reduce poverty in Indonesia, such as direct cash money, rice for the poor, also seeds and fertilizers subsidies for farmers. People are used to thinking of an idea that the poor can be looked by their physicals.

Actually, talking about poverty could not be limited on the physical condition which is called economics poverty. There are two other kinds of poverty in these forms of political and social poverty. Political poverty means a person who does not have consciousness about the government and its governance, and/or he/she does not have access to know about it or to participate in a decision making. Then social poverty means a person who does not have a good relationship with his/her neighbors and surroundings and/or he/she cannot get involved with them.

Before we think of some actions to reduce poverty, we would better figure out its causes. In the first paragraph, it is mentioned that personal conditions become the causes. They are called as cultural poverty that someone suffers economics poverty because of him/herself. He/she has some attitudes, such as laziness and desperation, which block him/her to earn money to live. Also he/she has no skill or ability to work in a proper job. The second cause of poverty is called a structural one. It is caused by the government’s policies that do not take side with marginalized people. Particularly in Indonesia whose corruption, collusion and nepotism extremely influence all of its aspects of life, many people suffer in structural poverty. In this condition, a person makes an effort in whatever ways to improve their livelihood; he/she still cannot live properly.

The structural poverty should be the main cause of poverty. It requires a big effort to find out the solution since we face the government who’s a big power of its people. As common people, we need to conduct some advocacy actions with specific strategies to the government in order to make suitable policies specifically for marginalized people. Therefore, besides developing our skill to work productively, we have to care with government’s policies with the purpose to reduce poverty in Indonesia.

The structural poverty is primarily causing the main problem faced by Indonesian people. It is suffered by the poor because of the unjust government’s policy. Their problem was known as limited access in economy, politics and social-culture, including health and education, which is called as basic needs of mankind. They were firmly accepted by the poor when the government concentrates on industrial development from agricultural one.

The fact really takes effect on an increasing number of the poor from agricultural livelihood such as farmers, farm workers and fishers. It is strengthen by another one that most of Indonesian people live in the same livelihood. Anyone should be worried about this reality while they produce food for human being essentially. Whenever happens, this world will be occupied by poorness and hunger.

Generally people do not realize the reality concerning politics. Since the government’s policy becomes the culprit of this poverty, it can be assumed to violate people’s right. Politics is a system dealing with all things engaged with power relations and public interests. In a national scope is the government that has the strongest power ever. Farmers are one of the communities who barely have a bargaining position with government because of their lack of access in politics. Whenever they experience the violation of their rights, they cannot advocate theirs without some supports from other parties. Eventually, they become the primary marginalized group in this country.

Never can the implementation of poverty reduction program by the government be successful without people’s participation and consciousness. At this time people still think unsurprisingly about the main cause of poverty, that is the personal cause or cultural one, barely ever can the government solve its problem of poverty and improve its development. Therefore, people have to understand exactly the main cause of poverty so that they could support the formation of the just government’s policy.

Dian Pratiwi Pribadi