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Disabled dentist writes to Jokowi as dream crushed
Keep rolling: Dentist Romi Syofpa Ismael poses for a photo at the office of the Padang Legal Aid Institute
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eep rolling: Dentist Romi Syofpa Ismael poses for a photo at the office of the Padang Legal Aid Institute. Romi, who has been on duty in a remote area in West Sumatra for the past four years, is having trouble securing permanent employment because of her disability.(JP/Syofiardi Bachyul Jb)
Romi Syofpa Ismael, a dentist from West Sumatra, had her dream crushed when her disability led the South Solok administration to remove her name from the civil servant candidate list.
But the 33-year-old woman, who has served as a contract dentist for four years at a community health center (Puskesmas) in Talunan, a remote area in the province’s South Solok regency, has refused to back down from demanding justice, as she maintains that being in a wheelchair does not hinder her ability to perform her job.
Ami, as the dentist is affectionately called, initially passed a series of tests in 2018 as part of the civil servant candidate selection. However, she could not fulfill all the requirements of the physical examination due to her weak lower legs, which she had suffered from for almost three years.
On March 18, Ami received a letter signed by South Solok Regent Muzni Zakaria saying that as she could not meet all the requirements, the administration had not forwarded her application to the National Civil Service Agency.
She planned to file a lawsuit against the South Solok administration to the Padang State Administrative Court with the help of the Padang Legal Aid Institute (LBH) to challenge the administration’s decision to remove her from the candidate list.
“I just want the [South Solok] administration to open the door for me [to become a civil servant],” Ami told The Jakarta Post at the LBH Padang office.
Ami said she had also sent a letter to President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to inform him about her situation, but that she had yet to receive a response from Jokowi’s office. “Where else can I find justice?” she said while trying to hold back tears.
A 2013 graduate of Padang Baiturrahmah University’s school of dentistry, Ami joined the government’s 2015-2016 temporary employment (PTT) program.
She joined the Talunan Puskesmas in 2015 as a contract dentist. However, after a year of service, she began suffering from weak lower legs in July 2016 following a Caesarian section she underwent to deliver her second child.
Ami returned to work in a wheelchair after receiving treatment for three months.
In October last year, Ami filed an application to become a civil servant and requested to fill an open post at Talunan Puskesmas. She passed the administration, main competency and field tests.
A team of doctors noted that Ami had weaknesses in both of her lower legs during a medical check-up. The doctors told Ami to see a neurologist, who confirmed the earlier findings.
However, she was still able to obtain a medical check-up document because she had demonstrated her competency as a dentist despite being in a wheelchair.
The head of the South Solok Health Agency even sent a recommendation letter to the regent, confirming Ami’s competency as a dentist at the Taluna Puskesmas. The Solok-Sawahlunto chapter of the Association of Indonesian Dentists (PDGI) also issued a similar recommendation.
“A dentist does not have to stand while working,” Ami said, “we can adjust the patient’s chair in accordance with our own comfort.”
However, the South Solok administration decided to remove her from the candidate list and instead replaced her with another dentist who reportedly did not pass the selection test.
The decision has been met with backlash from legal campaigners and activists advocating for disabled people’s rights, who called on the administration to uphold the rights of the disabled and ensure they were treated equally to those who were not disabled to end discrimination.
Activists from LBH Padang, the Padang chapter of the Association of Indonesian People with Disabilities (PPID), the Indonesian Women Coalition’s West Sumatra chapter and women’s organization WCC Nurani Perempuan have demanded Ami’s name be reinstated on the candidate list.
Ami said that her physical condition had improved since she had started practicing to walk with a cane. However, she is still unable to walk up stairs.
She has continued her struggle to demand justice and has asked for clarification from the National Civil Service Agency about her candidacy multiple times, but to no avail.
The South Solok administration and Muzni were not immediately available for comment at the time of the writing. (afr)
