Jakarta – Mothers in pink used the day before Valentine's Day to stage a demonstration Wednesday to demand better health services for the poor.

The mothers also wanted people to care more about poor mothers and their babies, said Rika Damayanti, executive director of Mother and Baby Care Organization (LPIB), the protest organizer.

Children and husbands joined the demonstration at the Grand Indonesia traffic circle, Central Jakarta, and many women involved said they had been victims of medical negligence.

"Valentine's Day is the perfect time to make the call because for many the day is identical with consumerism," Rika said. "Instead of wasting money for something less important, like chocolate and flowers, we ask people to care more about mothers and their babies, who suffer from malnutrition."

To overcome malnutrition issues, the Health Ministry should provide free nutritious food and beverages, including milk for poor mothers and their babies, Rika said.

Some women taking part in the demonstration said they could not afford to pay their hospital bills and others said they had lost their babies during labor.

Rika Damayanti said Indonesia's maternal mortality rate was quite high. She said around 300 to 400 per 100,000 mothers would die from birth related complications – the highest rate in Southeast Asia. In Malaysia, the maternal mortality rate is 41 per 100,000, Singapore is six per 100,000, Thailand is 44 per 100,000 and the Philippines is 170 per 100,000.

"We also ask the government to provide more health information for both poor and wealthy families, because many of them still lack of this kind of information," she said.

Rika lost her baby a few days after he was born through a Caesarean surgery last September and she has since campaigned for more information to be provided around Caesarean births.

"If I had read more information about it, I would have never lost my baby. That's why I urge the government to give more health information, not only for mothers but also for public health officials. I hope that there will never be any other mother who experiences the same as I did."

One protester, Nisah, said she could not afford to pay hospital bills after she delivered her twin babies, Efri and Erfan, in Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital last December.

"I paid Rp 2.5 million (US$266) to take Efri home, but Erfan had to stay longer because he had a respiratory problem and I could not afford the Rp 13 million bill," she said. With the help of a non-governmental organization, she said, the baby was finally sent home early this month. (trw)