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Home Country Profile Government Demography Legislation National Commission Action Plan Disaster Events Calendar Network Services Healthy Aging Research Publications ITCOA Training Center Alzheimer  L L I Y E L Sitemap              Increase Concentration To Improve Your Memory       MAPS     HEALTHY AGING   Joint NGO Statement to the 48th UN Commission for Social Development Strengthening the rights of older people worldwide Publish Date:November 23, 2009 URL:http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/csd/2010.html     Joint Statement by AARP, Global Action on Aging, HelpAge International, International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG), International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing (IAHSA), International Federation on Ageing (IFA) and International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, Inc. (INPEA) Commission for Social Development 3 - 12 February 2010 "Strengthening the rights of older people worldwide" Introduction 1. Older people continue to experience discrimination and violation of their rights and are subsequently marginalized and excluded from society. Existing human rights mechanisms do not sufficiently protect older people's rights and the time has come to explore new mechanisms to better protect their rights. Human rights, older people and social integration 2. The protection of human rights is central to social integration. Commitment 4 of the 1995 Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development committed governments to 'promote social integration by fostering societies that are stable, safe and just, and are based on the promotion and protection of all human rights'[1]. 3. Everywhere the world is ageing rapidly: by 2050 one in five of the world's population will be over the age of 60, with over three-quarters in developing countries[2]. As the world experiences rapid population ageing, the pressures that result in age discrimination are likely to intensify; so does the imperative to address such discrimination. 4. Protecting older people's rights and treating them with respect on an equal basis along with younger people will help them to lead dignified, secure lives, as equal members of society. Increased protection of the rights of older men and women creates the conditions which enable them to live more independently and to participate in and contribute to their own development, as well as that of those around them. In so doing, respecting and protecting all people's rights results in more inclusive, equitable and sustainable societies.

National Seminar on Home Care Socialization 15 April 2010 “ Masyarakat Peduli, Lanjut Usia Terlindungi “ Seminar Nasional Sosialisasi Home Care berlangsung di Hotel Bumiwiyata Depok (15/4) 2010, dihadir 100 peserta dari berbagai yayasan lansia seJabodetabek, “ sosialisasi ini dilakukan untuk meningkatkan kesejahteraan hidup Lansia di Indonesia melalui perlindungan dan pelayanan berbasis keluarga dan masyarakat dengan dukungan dari Pemerintah “, ujar Eva Sabdono (ketua Emong Lansia). Data Kementerian Sosial Direktorat Pelayanan Sosial Lanjut Usia, jumlah Panti Sosial Tresna Werdha yang dikelola oleh Pemerintah Pusat maupun Daerah dan Masyarakat berjumlah 235 unit dengan jumlah lanjut usia yang mampu ditangani sebanyak 11.397 orang, hal ini tidak sebanding dengan jumlah populasi lanjut usia yang terus bertambah, Home Care atau pendampingan dan perawatan social dalam rumah dilatarbelakangi oleh semakin meningkatnya jumlah lanjut usia. Indonesia dikatan negara succes story karena telah mampu memberikan kontribusinya dalam melaksanakan pelayanan terpadu bagi lanjut usia dan menjadi contoh bagi negara – negara lainnya, untuk lebih mengedepankan pelayanan berbasis keluarga dan masyarakat, kata Isep Septiyan disela – sela membuka seminar Nasional Sosialisasi Home Care. Lebih lanjut Isep mengatakan “ Masalah lanjut usia yang dihadapi saat ini bukan hanyak bertumpu pada sistim pelayanannya namun juga harus dipikirkan bagaimana lansia itu bisa diberdayakan sehingga mereka mampu hidup mandiri “ Selain itu, Indonesia tidak hanya menghadapi jumlah penduduk lansia yang besar, tetapi juga akan mengalami fenomena lansia yang banyak hidup dalam struktur keluarga dan masyarakat yang berubah. Jawaban atas tantangan fenomena lansia itu adalah upaya pemberdayaan lansia sendiri. Karena itu sudah saatnya pemerintah melaksanakan program aksi nasional untuk lansia agar upaya pemberdayaan lansia itu dapat memberikan hasil optimal, melalui Home Care, Pelayanan dalam panti dan Luar panti, lanjutnya Peningkatan jumlah usia lanjut ini berpotensi menimbulkan beberapa masalah pokok seperti meningkatnya beban keluarga, masyarakat, dan pemerintah, khususnya yang berhubungan dengan kebutuhan layanan khusus seperti kesehatan dan nutrisi. Menurut Data Badan Pusat Statistik, Tahun 2020 jumlah lanjut usia di Indonesia berjumlah 28,8 Juta atau 11,34% dari jumlah penduduk di Indonesia, ledakan ini tentunya tidak dapat dipungkiri mengingat angka harapan hidup lansia semakin meningkat, tahun 2010 jumlah lanjut usia telah mencapai 19 juta dengan usia harapan hidup rata – rata 72 tahun bahkan ada yang mencapai 80 tahun, Data Pusdatin(2008) menunjukan Jumlah lansia saat ini sekitar 16,5 juta, termasuk di dalamnya lansia yang masih potensial. Pada kesempatan itu hadir Drs. Isep Sepriyan (Kasubdit Kelembagaan Sosial Dit. LU Kementerian Sosial), Dra. Wiwin Wiansih (Kasubdit Pelayanan Sosial Luar Panti Dit. LU), Budi Prestyo, SH, MM (Direktur Pemberdayaan Adat dan Sosial Masyarakat Kemendagri, Prof. Dr. Tri Budi Wahyuni Raharjo (Direktur Center of Ageing Studies, Universitas Indonesia), Hadir pula Wakil Walikota Depok, DPRD, Pemda, Orsos/LSM yang peduli lansia. Sebelum acara penutupan, Depok telah didklarasisikan sebagai Kota Ramah Lansia***(Tira/C-9)

Discrimination against older people 5. The Universal Declaration on Human Rights (1948) states in Article 1 that "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights". This equality does not change with age. However, many older women and men continue to experience discrimination, abuse and neglect, with little attention paid to protecting their rights. 6. Older men and women age differently and the discrimination that they experience is often multi-dimensional, based not only on age but on other factors, such as gender, ethnic origin, where they live, disability, poverty, sexuality and/or literacy levels. The combination of a life time of gender-based discrimination and age discrimination means that older women often face disproportionate abuse and discrimination. Older people in rural areas, older refugees, older asylum seekers and stateless older people also experience disproportionate levels of discrimination. 7. Older men and women are often denied access to services and jobs or treated with disrespect because of their age and other factors such as gender or disability. Older men and women are often subjected to abuse including verbal, sexual, psychological and financial abuse. Many older people do not have financial protection such as pensions and other forms of social security. Older people may not receive appropriate health and social care because of their age. Treatment can be denied or older people can receive poor or insufficient service. 8. Sometimes older people are deemed 'unemployable' because of their age - this is a violation of a person's rights in the workplace, everyone has the right to income security. Furthermore older people may also be forced to stop working because of mandatory retirement ages. In many parts of the world inheritance laws, both statutory and customary, deny women of all ages the right to own or inherit property when their husband is deceased. Family members often force widows off their land or seize their property which is a violation of their right to equality in terms of ownership, management and disposition of property. Existing protection of older people's rights is inadequate 9. Existing international and regional human rights law does not sufficiently protect older people's rights. International human rights conventions that are legally binding all emphasise that human rights are for everyone. However, with the exception of one convention (on migrant workers), age is not listed explicitly as a reason why someone should not be discriminated against 10. In practice, the existing system is not adequately protecting older men and women's rights. For example treaty bodies, whose role it is to monitor how international conventions are being implemented, rarely ask countries to include older people in their reporting. At a national level, the continued existence of age discrimination and ageism in national laws, policies and practice is also a sign that governments have failed to adequately incorporate older people's rights into their laws, budgets, programmes and training for service delivery staff. 11. "Soft laws" guiding the treatment of older women and men, most notably the UN Principles for Older Persons (1991) and the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA, 2002), are not legally binding and as a result are not systematically integrated into government policies and practice .4 The need for new mechanisms to protect older people's rights 12. In the face of continuing discrimination and insufficient legal protection, the time has come to explore new mechanisms to better protect older people's rights. These include a special rapporteur and a convention on the rights of older people. 13. A convention would help older people live lives of dignity. It would help change attitudes towards older people; increase the visibility of older people, ageism and age discrimination; clarify responsibilities towards older people; improve accountability; and provide a framework for policy and decision making. This is essential for achieving social integration and building societies for all that respect everyone's rights. 14. The human rights standards that protect older people's rights are scattered throughout various international and regional conventions. Bringing the relevant provisions together in one text, as was successfully done for the rights of women, children and people with disabilities, would bring clarity to both the nature of older people's rights and the responsibilities necessary to protect them. 15. A special rapporteur on the rights of older people could advise and support member states on the better implementation of MIPAA and eventually a new convention. He or she could promote and give visibility to the rights of older people by examining and reporting on the nature and extent of violations of older people's rights and making recommendations on how to better protect older people's rights. He or she would also be able to encourage existing rapporteurs to address older people's rights within their own specific areas of concern. Recommendation 16. We urge the Commission for Social Development to recommend that Member States explore the possibility of new mechanisms to better protect the rights of all older women and men, including a special rapporteur and a convention on the rights of older people. [1] Commitment 4, Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development, 1995 http://www.un.org/documents/ga/conf166/aconf166-9.htm [2] UNDESA, World Population Prospects: the 2006 Revision, 2006

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE NATIONAL TRAINING WORKSHOP ON TRACKING PROGRESS TO IMPROVE HEALTH CARE NEEDS OF OLDER PERSONS IN INDONESIA AUGUST 22 - 24, 2005, JAKARTA, INDONESIA   The National Workshop on Health Care Needs of Older Persons was Organized by RI Ministry of Health Jakarta, 22 - 24 August 2005. in collaboration with Yayasan Emong Lansia, funded by UN ESCAP        For the most part, when older people lose their ability to do things on their own, it doesn't happen just because they have aged. More likely, it is because they have become inactive. Older inactive adults lose ground in four areas that are important for staying healthy and independent: endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility. Fortunately, research suggests that you can maintain or at least partly restore these four areas through exercise -- or through everyday physical activities (walking briskly or gardening, for example) that accomplish some of the same goals as exercise. What may seem like very small changes resulting from exercise and physical activity can have a big impact. Excercise: A Guide from the National Institute on Aging Target Heart Rate Source: National Institute on Aging   Preparing for an Aging World The world's population is aging at an accelerated rate. Declining fertility rates combined with steady improvements in life expectancy over the latter half of the 20th century have produced dramatic growth in the world's elderly population. People aged 65 and over now comprise a greater share of the world's population than ever before, and this proportion will increase during the 21st century. This trend has immense implications for many countries around the globe because of its potential to overburden existing social institutions for the elderly. One popular view envisions global aging as a looming catastrophe, as populations top-heavy with frail, retired elderly drain pension and social security funds, overwhelm health care systems, and rely for support on a dwindling working-age population. In Preparing for an Aging World: The Case for Cross-National Research (Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 2001), a panel of experts convened by the National Research Council (NRC), part of the National Academy of Sciences, examines the issues surrounding global aging and their implications for policy and research. The report rejects alarmist as well as complacent views of global aging. Though aging trends raise difficult issues, the report concludes there is no crisis. Aging is gradual and its consequences tend to appear gradually and predictably. Thus policymakers have time to deal with these issues before they become acute problems. Furthermore, because aging is at different stages around the world, there are opportunities for nations to learn from each other's experiences. Taking advantage of these opportunities will require cross-national planning and coordination of research and data collection. A PROFILE OF GLOBAL AGING Population aging refers to an increase in the percentage of elderly people (65 and older). The number of elderly increased more than threefold since 1950, from approximately 130 million (about 4 percent of global population) to 419 million (6.9 percent) in 2000. The number of elderly is now increasing by 8 million per year; by 2030, this increase will reach 24 million per year. The most rapid acceleration in aging will occur after 2010, when the large post­World War II baby boom cohorts begin to reach age 65. The elderly population itself is also growing older. The "oldest old" (80 and older) population is the fastest-growing group among the elderly. Levels of illness and disability among this group far exceed those for other age groups, and thus the needs of this group are likely to increase substantially in the 21st century. In 2000, Italy was the world's "oldest" nation, with more than 18 percent of its population aged 65 and over (compared with 8 percent in 1950). Also with notably high levels (above 17 percent) were Sweden, Belgium, Greece, and Japan. Among the world's regions, Europe has the highest proportion of population aged 65 and over and should remain the global leader in this category well into the 21st century. However, other regions of the world will begin to age much more rapidly in coming decades: The percentage of those aged 65 and older in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Near East/North Africa will more than triple by 2050 (see figure on next page). AGING RAISES CRITICAL POLICY ISSUES These shifts in global age structure highlight several areas in which policymakers need a clearer understanding of aging's effects and the impacts of alternative policies. These areas include the following: Work, Retirement, and Pensions Global Aging, 2000 - 2050: Percentage of Elderly by Region One of the most dramatic developments of the past 40 years has been declining labor force participation among older people in many parts of the world. Public pension plans in some countries have created incentives for older workers to retire, thus exacerbating the financial problems posed by aging populations. There has also been a shift in many countries from pay-as-you-go retirement programs to fully funded ones, as well as a shift toward private programs. It is important to disentangle incentives for leaving the workforce, as well as to ensure a closer alignment between public and private pension programs. For many developing nations that are now designing pension programs that have public as well as private components, there are opportunities to learn from more-developed nations' experiences. Private Wealth and Income Security The need for income security during retirement--now an increasingly lengthy and important segment of life for many--is an important concern in developed societies. Providing income security has raised two critical policy challenges: (1) ensuring that individuals have sufficient income during retirement to avoid a sharp decline in living standards and (2) ensuring that elderly people are sheltered from financial risks. Policymakers need better data on the economic behavior of elderly populations, such as whether they continue to save or begin to "dissave." Transfer Systems The well-being of older persons often depends on intricate systems of pecuniary and non-pecuniary transfers associated with individual savings, family behavior, and, as in the case of many social security systems, transfers from current workers to retired persons. Although considerable progress has been made in understanding these transfer systems, gaps in our understanding remain. Particularly in need of study are interrelationships across systems and a clearer picture of how changes in one system (such as public pensions) affect others. For instance, do publicly funded programs crowd out private-sector or family-based transfers? Health The health of elderly populations is a critical issue and influences outcomes in all of the other policy areas affected by aging. Evidence shows that disability is declining across countries, which would suggest that more elderly people are leading longer and healthier lives. While all countries must address the changing health needs of older citizens, the diversity of national health care systems points to the value of comparable cross-national data on health care quality and outcomes, which to date have largely been lacking. Well-Being Overarching the financial and health status of older populations is the issue of their well-being and quality of life--not simply in later years but from birth to death. Our understanding of this issue would benefit from measures of subjective well-being that are sensitive to changes in well-being during major life transitions, such as retirement. CROSS-NATIONAL RESEARCH CAN INFORM POLICY RESPONSES To address these gaps, the NRC panel recommended that nations coordinate data collection and research in order to leverage resources and benefit from nations' collective experience. Specifically, the panel identified several activities for pursuing an effective research agenda on aging: Develop multidisciplinary research designs to produce data on aging populations that can most effectively inform policy choices. Conduct longitudinal research to illuminate the long-term interrelationships among work, health, economic status, and family structure. Establish mechanisms that will help to harmonize and standardize data collected in different countries. Emphasize the critical importance of cross-national research, organized as a cooperative venture that will enhance the ability of policymakers to evaluate institutional and programmatic features of aging policy. Consolidate information from multiple sources to generate linked databases. Create unhindered access to relevant data for the widest possible community of scientists. THE WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY IS SHRINKING The report emphasizes that the full effects of global aging are still decades away. Therefore nations have time to develop and use research tools to guide future policies. However, considerable lead time will be required to collect and interpret the kinds of data scientists need to understand the ramifications of aging. Nations need to act promptly to develop strategies for generating policy- relevant information to guide policymaking and to avoid the potential for a global "aging" crisis. RB-5058 (2001) RAND policy briefs summarize research that has been more fully documented elsewhere. Unlike most RAND policy briefs, this brief describes work conducted outside RAND, in this case by the National Research Council (NRC), and documented in Preparing for an Aging World: The Case for Cross-National Research, ISBN: 0-309-07421-5 (pb). Copies of the NRC report are available from the National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20418, or at http://www.nap.edu/. The NRC study was funded by the Behavioral and Social Research Program of the National Institute on Aging. If you would like a copy of a CD-ROM that contains the full text of the NRC report Preparing for an Aging World: The Case for Cross-National Research, as well as 11 other reports that the NRC has prepared for the National Institute on Aging, please contact the Behavioral and Social Sciences Program, National Institute on Aging, 7201 Wisconsin Avenue, Room 533, Bethesda, MD 20892. As part of its mission to synthesize and disseminate important population-related research, RAND's Population Matters program produced this policy brief in consultation with the NRC. Population Matters is sponsored by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the United Nations Population Fund. Population Matters publications and other project information are available at www.rand.org/labor/popmatters. This research brief is also available in printed form. RAND publications are available from RAND Distribution Services (Telephone: 310-451-7002, or toll free 877-584-8642; Fax: 310-451-6915; E-mail: order@rand.org; or the Web: www.rand.org/publications/order). RAND® is a registered trademark. RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis; its publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of its research sponsors. Source: Rand Corp