A group of people from Keputih halfway house in Surabaya, East Java, Monday (11/9), walk to a vehicle which will take them home. Fifty-five residents of the halfway house, who were declared socially fit after receiving treatment for a variety of mental disorders and occupational therapy, were allowed to go home with hopes that they would be able to reenter society and resume normal lives with their families and in their communities.
Lipri Supiandi Manurung, 37, sat in deep concentration, listening to every word his companion said. Once or twice, he asked about how they first met.
“Once you reunite with your family, take good care of them. Find a good job so that you have something to do. Make sure that your mind is never idle, as it could trigger a relapse,” said Mulyanto, 43, a companion at the Keputih halfway house (Liponsos), Surabaya, East Java.
On Monday (11/9), Manurung and 54 other persons with mental disorder at Keputih halfway house were getting ready to go home. They come from East Java, Central Java, West Java, Bangka Belitung Islands, South Sulawesi, North Sulawesi and North Sumatera. The Keputih halfway house is a place that treats persons with mental disorders, as well as homeless people and beggars, so they can return to society.
Keputih halfway house has declared that 55 of the 1,367 people with mental disorders to be socially fit. They will be taken to their respective homes to resume their normal lives.
Manurung, who has a wife and a child, does not remember when he started suffering from depression. All he remembers is that he has been to six mental hospitals in Bogor, West Java, and Pematang Siantar, North Sumatera, for treatment. However, none of them worked, and he was soon “thrown out” by his family and ended up in Surabaya.
“I still remember my older brother asking me to get on a plane to Surabaya on Kartini Day. He said that I was going for treatment. But my brother left me in this city and I was taken by the public order agency to Liponsos Keputih,” Manurung said.
His failing four times to pass the selection process to join the Indonesian Military triggered the onset of his depression. Manurung had then become a tin miner in the Bangka Belitung Islands. However, the work could not rid him of his disappointment. His depression grew worse. At least, that is what he remembers.
“You were restrained during the first two days at the halfway house because you often became enraged,” said Anggi Nadroh Muhammad, 25, a Keputih nurse.
“Oh really? I don’t remember,” Manurung replied.
Since he first arrived at the halfway house on Apr. 22, 2017, Manurung had received inpatient treatment for a month at Surabaya’s Menur mental hospital. He had to take medication regularly in the morning and afternoon. The hospital nurses made sure not a single dose was missed.
Once he was allowed leave Menur mental hospital, Manurung returned to Keputih. His days there were filled with occupational therapy. The therapy included receiving spiritual guidance, making mats, exercising and farming. The purpose of these activities is to enable people with mental disorders to become independent, so that they can be productive in their daily lives.
According to Anggi, before undergoing occupational therapy, Manurung used to talk to himself, hallucinate and was difficult to communicate with. Now, Manurung is cooperative, independent and communicative.
After getting the news that he was allowed to go home, Manurung held onto his hopes. “I want to see my family. My wife and child would definitely be happy having me back,” he said, smiling.
His hopes were similar to that of Angga Ari Apriyani, 32. For the last 10 months, the woman from Klaten, Central Java, has lived at the Keputih halfway house. As far as she can recall, she walked from Klaten to Surabaya, which took her several days.
Apriyani arrived in Surabaya in a disheveled state. The public order agency took her to Keputih.
Now, Apriyani is ready to look to the future. “I want to sell doormats and hand-crafted gallon covers, which we learned to make at the halfway house,” she said.
Apriyani says it is tough for her to leave the halfway house she regards as her own home. Every day, she helped distribute meals to the other occupants and reminded them to take their medication, so that they remained mentally stable. On the other hand, she wants to live a normal life.
Capacity overload
The head of Liponsos Keputih Agency’s technical implementation unit, Sugianto, said that this was the first time the Surabaya administration has sent home people who had recovered from mental disorders, and that this would be continued gradually. Those that have been declared socially fit would be sent home as soon as possible.
This was parts of the administration’s efforts to reduce the number of occupants at the halfway house, because the house has currently exceeded its capacity. The Keputih halfway house has a maximum capacity to receive 600 people. Now, it is home to 1,367 people with mental disorders. Every day, the center receives at least three people with mental illnesses who are brought in by the public order agency. Most of them come from outside Surabaya.
The 55 people who have been declared socially fit will be sent home with a month’s supply of medication. They are also provided with a refill on their prescriptions, so they can continue to obtain their medication even after returning to their families. “We work together with the social agency of the occupant’s place of origin for supervision,” Sugianto said.
Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini realizes that many people with mental illnesses in Surabaya are “exiles”from other areas. “I feel that this is inhumane. If they are treated and cared for, they can restore their independence,” she said.
Even though Keputih is overcrowded, Risma will not allow people with mental illnesses to be neglected in Surabaya.
She hoped that every region had a place like Liponsos Keputih to accommodate people with mental disorders. This would ensure that the occupants could at least be in the same area as their families during therapy, given that relatives generally don’t come to visit them in the halfway house.
Risma stressed that people with mental disorders had a right to be independent like other people. The forced confinement of people with mental disorders is inhumane, because such people could actually be treated by medication and therapy for returning to society, as has been proven by Keputih.
Keputih is allocated a budget of Rp 250 million a year to support and treat its occupants. The East Java provincial administration does not contribute to the center’s activities.
“They must also be able to live freely. The Surabaya administration will continue to take care of them and help them recover without regard to their place of origin,” said Risma.
