This is not a flat world

Sunday July 6, 2008
A struggle to survive

By JOSEPH LOH and RASHVINJEET S.BEDI

For people living in poverty, life has always been a constant struggle. So how are they supposed to cope with the increasing prices of goods and services?

WITH increasing prices of goods in Malaysia and everywhere else around the world, people now more than ever are feeling the pinch. However, for those who are living in or at the edge of poverty, struggling to make ends meet is nothing new.

For this unfortunate group of people, making enough money to survive was difficult enough before. Now, their quality of life has deteriorated even further.

Single mother's struggle
Single mother R. Kaur earns RM900 a month doing housekeeping work. With her meagre earnings, she has to support her family of six children. While three of her children are more or less self-sufficient, she still has three school-going children.

More distressingly, her house rental alone is RM650, which leaves her with just RM250 to spend monthly. What amount of money she has left goes to utility bills, food and transportation. “Actually, everything costs more than what I have. Frankly, I do not know how I survive. God is so good; He has helped us through all these years.”

Urban woes: Siti’s 11 grandchildren share a home with nine others. Living in the city is harder for the orang asli as they have no land to grow vegetables or rivers to catch fish.

With high food prices, she serves very basic meals. “I cook rice and usually just one dish of rasam (a spicy soup) with maybe some tofu in it.”

Sometimes, she forgoes her own meals so that her children can have a little more to eat.
“I don't have lunch, and it has been years since I had it. Now I am used to it. We have to cut out one meal and eat the same food every day; we have no choice.

For medical treatment, she goes to the the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital. In the case of any emergencies, she is fortunate to have her brother who is living abroad to call upon for help.
The typical loving parent, her life is devoted to her children, and she wishes nothing but the best for them.

“My older children have not finished their education. They are working now so they can save money for it. Even so, they always try to help me out first and put their education second.

“My children have to be independent, and it is a good thing in one way. I told them to finish their Form Five, but I tell them that I cannot provide beyond that, so they do what they can for themselves.”

When asked what improvements she would like to see in her life, she says: “It would be nice if we didn't have to depend on anyone. I just don't want prices to rise anymore. We were already on a budget before, now it is even worse. We lead a simple lifestyle. How do I cut more costs?”

Poverty in the city
Jane Pragasam and her 16-year-old daughter survive on her late husband's pension of RM290, social welfare of RM80 and RM100 from day-care of a child – a total of RM460.

She stays in a dilapidated flat in Jalan Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, for which she pays RM124, and her utilities cost her about RM45.

She cuts cost mainly in one area – food. “Before prices went up, I needed about RM500 a month. Now I cut down on food. I don't eat much and I do cooking only on weekends, when my daughter is around,” she says.

Making ends meet: R.Kaur’s family lives on rice and rasam every day. ‘I do not know how I survive. God is so good; He has helped us through all these years.’

For her daily consumption, she eats the leftovers from the weekend and bread; one loaf can last her about four days.

“If we need food, I buy one roti canai, maybe one or two idli which I share with my daughter,” Jane says.

She does receive some aid from the church she attends – in monetary form for her daughter's tuition classes and some dry goods and food provisions.

She has even foregone an operation for a hernia problem because she says she cannot afford it.
Jane has always put her daughter's needs before her own.

“She is a teenager, and she needs things like clothes and books. I am not educated, have no job, am not very healthy and I can't do much. But whatever she wants, I try my level best to provide.”

Jane says that she is not asking for much, but wants to ensure that the needs for her daughter’s future and education are taken care of.

More worrisome is the fact that she has been asked to vacate her flat and move to low-cost housing. “I do not have the money to move. There are moving expenses I cannot afford.”
Despite her situation, Jane places her faith in God.

“The one thing I have is trust in God and hope He will provide, and that is why I manage.”

Living amid the residents of bungalows and apartments in Desa Temuan, Petaling Jaya, is a group of orang asli who were given the accommodation there when they were relocated from reserve land in Bukit Lanjan,The area they live in belies the fact that they are struggling to make ends meet.

“It looks as if we are living luxuriously, but we are suffering to fill our stomachs,” says Siti Aishah, 50, who stays home to take care of her grandchildren.

Siti's household has almost 20 people, including her 11 grandchildren, all sharing a good-sized house with very old furniture in poor condition.

She says that with a combined monthly household income of almost RM2,000, they have to operate on a strict budget.

“It's very tough. The price of everything is up while the salaries have not increased,” she laments, citing the example of salted fish, which used to cost RM1 a plate but costs double now. Once a month, they treat themselves to beef, mutton or chicken.

“The adults have to eat less; our priority is the children,” she adds.

In the mornings, they have rice, salted fish and eggs or fried rice while lunch and dinner usually consists of a meal of rice with vegetables and soup. A 5kg bag of rice lasts them a week.
Siti says that it was easier to live in the village where they could plant tapioca, bananas and vegetables while chickens could be reared easily in the backyard.

“But the land here is not suitable for planting.”

They used to catch fish from the rivers but now they would have to pay RM10 an hour to fish at former mining pools – even then, the catch is rare, claims Siti.

Ramli Nemat, 53, who operates a sundry shop in Desa Temuan, says there is a 30% drop in sales ever since the latest round of petrol hikes. He says that there was no option but to raise prices of the things he sold.

A 10kg bag of rice, for example, has increased from RM18 to RM28 while the prices of flour and other essentials have also risen quite drastically.

According to Ramli, a former orang asli affairs officer, many do not prioritise education and end up with low-paying jobs such as gardeners, security guards or cleaners. Some work in the forestry department while there are those who still tap rubber.

“Their pay is not much,” he says, sharing that they earned about RM30 to RM40 a day.
“If the situation worsens it would be better for them to stay in the village where they can go and look for forest produce,” says Ramli.

Refugees in Malaysia
If Malaysians are struggling to cope with rising prices, the situation for refugees is far worse – they have no income. Even with a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) card, they are not allowed to work.

Myanmarese couple Ram Lian, 57, and wife Mary, 43, are coping the best they can.

Before getting a volunteer job, Mary used to stay in Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur, where she and her husband would fast for six days a week, taking nothing but water. Now, they fast four days a week as a form of prayer for their lives to improve.

The couple were forced to seek refuge in Malaysia because they were not allowed to practise their religion in northern Myanmar. At present, they volunteer at a school for refugee children in Puchong, teaching English, Bible studies and music.

They live in a small room with only a mattress and cupboard. They do not receive a salary, and are fortunate not to have to pay for food or accommodation. Even then, the couple are affected by higher food prices.

“We have to pray for the best. Life is difficult but God will help us,” says Mary who believes in the power of prayer.

Her brother, who lives with his wife and two children in Jalan Ipoh is worse off. Her brother is a wireman and only gets occasional work.

“They are struggling,” says Mary, adding that they had to depend on donations.
For Mary, she is preoccupied with how to repay her debts.

“I was forced to borrow money but hope to give it back someday, although I don't know how I am going to do it,” she says with tears in her eyes.

Sui Tin Tial, 26, from Myanmar who is seeking refuge here with her mother, cousin and adopted sister, says that they cannot be wasteful.

“For us refugees who cannot get a job, even RM1 is precious. If we see 10sen on the road, we will pick it up,” she says.

Sui has been volunteering at a local school for refugees for eight months teaching English, Science and Mathemathics. For Sui, she must learn to eat whatever she gets.

“We must like it wherever we go. There is no choice,” she says, while admitting to being afraid of the authorities.

Sui says that some workers are taken advantage off and not paid their remuneration by their bosses at the end of the month.