Ninety-five disability rights groups across Indonesia have rejected the government’s plan to issue only one government regulation (PP) to enforce Law No.8/2016 on people with disabilities.

The proposed regulation was later dubbed the "One Size Fits All PP" (PP Sapujagad) by the organizations, which are questioning the government's commitment to protecting the rights of people with disabilities.

“The negative impact of this plan for disabled people is that it will make it difficult to fulfil their rights as Indonesian citizens,” Presti Murni Setiati from the Inclusive Public Center and Disability Advocacy Movement (Sigab) said in a press conference in Yogyakarta on Thursday.

Other rights groups that rejected the so-called PP Sapujagad were Braille’iant Indonesia, Bunga Bali Foundation, the Sidorejo Disabilities Forum, the Yakkum Rehabilitation Center and the Situbondo Association for Deaf Persons.

After the issuance of the 2016 law on people with disabilities, the government was given two years to draw up a regulation to provide the legal basis for its implementation. Disability rights activists said the law mandated the issuance of 15 PPs related to education services, legal assistance, employment opportunities and other rights for people with disabilities.

“The government later reduced the number of regulations to seven, before it decided there would be only one PP issued by the Social Affairs Ministry,” said Presti.

She was worried that other government institutions might be reluctant to implement a regulation that would be drawn up solely by the Social Affairs Ministry. For example, the rights of disabled persons for adequate access to education might remain unfulfilled, as this was the responsibility of the Culture and Education Ministry. (ebf)

Independent voice: A man expresses his opposition to the government’s plan to issue only one government regulation to implement Law No. 8/2016 on People with Disabilities on a large banner at an Aug.10 advocacy event in Yogyakarta. (JP/Bambang Muryanto)