A proposal by a regional governor in Indonesia to make vasectomy a prerequisite for men to receive state welfare has ignited a firestorm of criticism, with religious leaders, rights advocates and academics denouncing it as a coercive policy that targets the poor, violates Islamic teachings and reflects a troubling view of poverty as a personal failing.
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West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi, known for his provocative policy suggestions, such as sending unruly children to military schools modelled after the Chinese system, recently floated the idea of requiring poor men to undergo sterilisation in exchange for access to the government’s social welfare programme, known locally as bansos.
“I don’t know why poor families generally have many children, while rich people have difficulty having children, even after paying two billion rupiah (US$121,000) for IVF,” Dedi said in a speech on April 28.
He mentioned a couple he encountered with 11 children, some of whom were sent onto the streets to sell cakes.
“Stop having children if you can’t provide for them well,” he added, suggesting funds used to subsidise hospital births for underprivileged women be redirected towards building “simple houses”.
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Dedi’s proposal went further, outlining that vasectomy would also be a requirement for poor families seeking new electricity connections, food aid, scholarships or public housing. Men who agreed to the procedure would receive 500,000 rupiah (US$30) each.