Keeping IDF’s Commitments for Providing Access for People with Disabilities

Disability activists during the inspection at the Ritz Carlton Hotel, Mega Kuningan, last June 2018.

Sugianto just firstly used his voting right in General Election when he was 29 years old in 2014. Before that, he didn’t receive any notification paper for voting although his house was only 100 meters from a Polling Station in Pacitan. At that time, Sugianto, who is visually-impaired, had his voting right ignored.

"In 2004, there was a problem on companion because KPPS (polling station working committee) didn’t provide companion staffs. Then I asked for my wife’s help because she was the one I trusted,” Sugianto said as quoted from Detik.com, end of June 2018.

Along with the aggressiveness of public campaigns from the General Election Commission or KPU, the number of voters with disabilities keeps rising. Helping tools for voters are more variously available, from the special template, props and interesting visual for voters with hearing impairment to voting tables which are easily accessed by people with wheelchairs. Companion staffs are ready to help, too.

Anyone who holds Indonesian citizenship, including people with disabilities, has rights to access public space and basic right. As such, inclusive space is required not only in forms of buildings or public facilities but also for all activities. This step isn’t easy as a view still persists on harder efforts in providing friendly facilities for people with disabilities compared to doing that for those with no disabilities.

“But actually facilities (for people with disabilities) can be gradually done and fixed," said researcher from the Center of Legal Study and Indonesian Policy, Fajri Nursyamsi, on the sidelines of preparation events prior to the Indonesia Development Forum (IDF) 2018 event to be held on 10-11 July 2018.

This year, IDF takes a theme of “Pathways to Tackle Regional Disparities across the Archipelago”. IDF 2018 is a forum held by the National Development Planning Agency or Bappenas and is supported by the Government of Australia though Knowledge Sector Initiative (KSI). IDF 2018 drives accelerated development in Indonesia to be more equal and sustainable based on knowledge, experience and fact. 
The result of the IDF 2018 will be used as materials to compose Medium-Term Development Plan 2020-2024. 


Fajri said access for people with disabilities must be adjusted with the capabilities of the people with disabilities. For instance, he said, people with the hearing impairment must be closed to visual guidance thus they must be the nearby screen on every event. On the other hand, people in wheelchairs need spacious rooms to enable them freely moving around.

A number of buildings in Indonesia add facilities that are friendly for people with disabilities. For example, the National Library in Central Jakarta area that provides a guiding block inside and outside the rooms. Guiding block that helps guiding people with visual impairment is made flat with the floors of the Library, different from similar guiding blocks in main road sidewalk which are softer and elongated. The guiding block at the Library directs visitors to some venues, such as elevators, escalator or addressed rooms.

Other facilities for people with disabilities can also be found in the sidewalks in front of the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital. Not only guiding block, the sidewalks are also equipped with the railing or waist-high iron-made handgrip heading to areas inside the hospital. The railing is intentionally made to direct people with disabilities to go to other rooms. People with physical disabilities that use wheelchairs can make use of the handgrip to keep their bodies in balance, while people with visual impairment can utilize the handgrip to help them walk faster. Big cities already provide a lot of public facilities for people with disabilities although not all of them are complete.

The then Jakarta Special Capital Territory Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat officiates a friendly toilet for people with disabilities in the tourism area of the National Monument. 

“This is the prototype of the toilet that will be built by the Jakarta Special Capital Territory Provincial Administration. We must have a standardized prototype and we actually want to establish this sort of toilet, as found in shopping malls, to be placed in city parks,” Djarot said as quoted by Kompas.com, in the middle of August, last year.

Not only important public facilities, a lot of commercial sites already begin offering friendly facilities for people with disabilities. One of them is Ritz Carlton Hotel in Mega Kuningan, Jakarta, where the Indonesia Development Forum 2018 will be held. Despite few aspects remain to be repaired, this hotel provides toilets for people with disabilities. Some of the stairs are equipped with railings.

“The ballroom (of the Ritz Carlton Hotel, Mega Kuningan) looks nice because there are no pillars hence all rooms are visible,” said Irdanelly, Jakarta Chapter Chief of Indonesia’s People with Hearing Impairment Welfare Movement.

Irda said people with hearing impairment require unblocked rooms to enable them freely looking and following events. The absence of pillars also help those with wheelchairs and have visual impairment moving around.

At the IDF 2018, companion staffs are ready to assist people with disabilities to access the international scale event. IDF 2018 works with volunteers from Bravo for Disabilities as companions for attendees with disabilities. They are accustomed to accompanying people with disabilities with their capabilities in many events.

The volunteers will be placed from lobby to each room, including a relay system that helps people with disabilities moving from one room to another one, the toilet is no exception. The placement of companions is based on the gender of people with disabilities in need. The organizing committee of the IDF will brief to comprehend the perspectives of the people with disabilities and create the event which will be friendly to people with disabilities.

However, Jakarta Chapter Chief of Indonesia’s Association of People with Visual Impairment, Eka Setiawan, said the presence of the companions must not reduce the meaning of inclusivity of an event. This means people with disabilities must be treated as independent individuals and must not be differentiated from other participants.

“People with disabilities don’t need special symbols, the companions must instead wear special signs so they will be easily asked for help when a lot of people are around,” Eka said. **