Disability mainstreaming in disaster emergency management remains a major challenge in Indonesia, especially in the pandemic situation which has now been going on for a year. Disasters, whether those that occur quickly such as floods and landslides, or slow onset ones, pose a threat to the increasing vulnerability of vulnerable groups, including people with disabilities.
In the COVID-19 pandemic situation, for example, groups with disabilities are still not much involved in the pandemic handling process at the strategic level, which makes many of their needs not fulfilled by the government. In fact, quite a number of people infected by the virus have pre-existing disabilities and the support services provided for them are minimal and far from sufficient to meet their needs.
Muhammad Syamsudin or Udin, together with the Sasana Inklusi & Gerakan Advokasi Difabel (SIGAB) also observed how the needs of people with disabilities are often left behind from government’s list of priorities.
“The information provided by the government is still very general in nature and difficult for people with disabilities to access. For example, most of it is not available in braille thus cannot be read by people who are blind or visually impaired. Not only that, friends with disabilities also find it difficult to carry out the protocol urged by the government because of their limitations, while the information specially prepared for people with disabilities does not yet exist.”
The use of closed masks, for example, is a new barrier for people who have difficulty hearing and rely on lip movements and sign language to communicate.
Even though the push for inclusivity has emerged and has begun to be included in various disaster responses, often organizations work only on the technical side and encounter many obstacles due to the lack of infrastructure that accommodates the needs of vulnerable groups, which should be provided by the government. It also exposes the gap where people with disabilities are left behind and their needs not being met.
“For example, we learned from the eruption of Mount Merapi in 2010, people with disabilities who did not manage to save themselves were generally because they had no access to information or were not reached. Even for the evacuation process, it was difficult for us because there was no car that could accommodate assistive devices such as wheelchairs. Coordination and refugee camps are also often not disability friendly, making people with disabilities and their families have to rent their own houses and making them undetected by the government. Organizations concerned with disabilities and inclusivity also mostly must work alone even though the resources are very limited.”
With regard to the increasingly active volcano of Merapi throughout 2020, RedR Indonesia and the Sleman Disaster Risk Reduction Forum (FPRB) also highlighted the importance of mainstreaming disability and inclusivity issues in contingency planning and disaster response at least at the district level. This process includes inviting SIGAB in the hearing process with SATGAS COVID at the regional level and BAPPEDA DIY to provide information and facilities that are inclusive of groups with disabilities. Hearing was also held with the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Sleman in response to the potential threat of the eruption of Merapi.
The hearing process is a form of encouragement to raise disability and inclusivity issues at the strategic level and to increase the involvement of groups with disabilities in disaster management, not just being silent as spectators or mere recipients. The hope is that the needs of groups with disabilities will also be given more attention, not only after a disaster has occurred, but there is also a form of prevention and preparation in contingency plans.
“Apart from preparing the facilities and infrastructure needed by groups with disabilities, such as tools and cars for the evacuation process, there is also a need to survey and map the location of people with disabilities around the slopes of Merapi so people with disabilities can be evacuated and away from the location of danger quickly,” Udin explained.
This hearing process also made good progress. The SOP for Volunteers currently being prepared by BPBD Sleman has started to include the special needs of vulnerable groups, including groups with disabilities. Disability groups themselves are also continuously involved in the process so that disaster management, especially in DIY, accommodates and empowers groups with disabilities. This further reinforces that mainstreaming disability issues in disaster management planning at the strategic level is also increasingly crucial in the midst of the threat of the eruption of Mount Merapi, especially during the pandemic.
“If these needs have been guaranteed at the strategic level, the technical implementation will be fulfilled and the track will be smooth,” said Udin.
