Nutritions for my Friends

What have you eaten today?

To many of us, this is not a tough question. Maybe, without even asking, some of us would express our delight or disgust of what we just ate. Sometimes, the details about the shape and taste of the food as well as its nutrients flowed easily out of our mouth. Eating can indeed stimulates our senses and makes us happy. Unfortunately, not all of us can have such a pleasant experience.

In one opportunity, I watched a short clip from Youtube sent to me by a friend. In this clip, a middle-aged man walked from one fast food restaurant to another with a big container in his hand. What he was doing might make you want to puke. He collected food leftovers from the restaurant’s garbage bins – many of the food pieces were shapeless, mixed with dirty napkins, greases, sauces and who knows what else. However, what really struck me was seeing the look on his children’s faces when he reached home with his container full of food waste – they heartily ate the waste from the fast food restaurants. They looked genuinely happy and satisfied.

I got goosebumps and felt ashamed of myself. “How is this possible?” I asked. The clip did not happen in Indonesia, but still, who can guarantee that the same thing does not happen in Indonesia? For everyday I see street kids scraping for food and even live on the street. How are we going to give these kids a healthy meal, when our government cares more about upgrading their perks like housing and computers? What kind of future are we offering to these kids?

Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1826) said, “Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.” In Indonesia, according to the Department of Health’s data in 2008, 18 million children in Indonesia are malnourished. I believe it is not difficult for Anthelme to describe who and what Indonesian children are in 2010 – a year whose 41 days have passed us by. Quoting a poem from Adhie Massardi titled “Country of Scums”:

“Do you know what constitutes a country of scums? A country whose leaders live in abundance but its people eat from searching trash cans or becoming drudges in another country where meagre pay and abuse is a daily reality …”

Are there still hope in our country, which Adhie Massardi called as a country of scums?

The Prita Mulyasari case could be the antithesis of the Adhie Massardi poem. This country of scums still has hope! You and I, along with many Indonesians, still have a conscience and a sense of justice, evident in the Rp615,562,043 worth of small coins (kompas.com/30/12/2009) collected to bail her out from prison, even if she doesn’t get to win in court!

Marginal kids are in the same condition, if not worse, than Prita. WHO stated that lack of nutrition contributed to 54% of deaths. In the long term, lack of nutrition could cause physical, mental and intellectual breakdown. Taking all this into account, a campaign to promote nutrition as a child’s basic right – including for marginal kids (street kids, poor families, trash collectors, etc.) – is a main message for SAHABAT ANAK in 2010.

Nutrition is a series of organic substance needed by all living organisms to function normally, to grow, and to maintain health. Nutrition is obtained through food and liquid absorbed by the body.

As a friend of Sahabat Anak, I believe you will not dare to allow more children – including marginal kids – as the future of our country to become drudges in another country where meagre pay and abuse is a daily reality. So, friends, let us take part in building a future for these children by setting aside a single Rp 50,000 note to contribute to providing regular nutrition to the marginal kids under the wings of Sahabat Anak as well as distributing nutritious meals for kids under the wings of other similar insitutions, with a target of reaching 3,000 children in the greater Jakarta area (Jakarta, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi).

Maybe you would say, “This initiative is a drop of water in the ocean.” But this is a utopian saying from someone who doesn’t see the future. The free market agreement is going to hit Indonesia in 2010. Imported products will flood our markets at low price, competing with local products made by our hands. If Indonesian children are under threat of physical, mental and intellectual breakdown because their nutritional needs are not met, imagine what kind of future this country holds.

So be optimistic! There is still hope. Your generosity today is the first step of faith, but please do not limit your involvement merely on the upcoming Hari Sahabat Anak on February 17, 2010. Be an observer in the execution of this nutrition campaign to ensure that your money reaches the intended recipients. Let’s do this movement in a big way to built the future of our children!

Sitta Manurung, M.Si
Journalist/Food Writer, Culinary Observer, Food Sociologist, Food Stylist, and a friend of Sahabat Anak.