Krisis Perumahan Global—Adakah Solusinya?

Semakin banyak orang yang tidak mampu memiliki rumah yang layak untuk ditinggali. Bagaimana krisis perumahan mempengaruhi Anda? Apa yang dapat dilakukan?

Setiap Orang Butuh Rumah

”Setiap orang berhak atas taraf hidup yang menjamin kesehatan dan kesejahteraan untuk dirinya dan keluarganya, termasuk . . . perumahan.”—Deklarasi Universal Hak Asasi Manusia, Butir 25.

SEBUAH populasi besar buruh tani pendatang lambat laun menetap di daerah yang kini mereka sebut rumah. Di daerah pinggiran kota itu, ratusan keluarga menetap di kamp-kamp karavan bersewa murah yang disebut parqueadero. Di sini, layanan dasar seperti pembuangan limbah, pasokan air yang dapat diandalkan, dan pembuangan sampah masih sangat primitif atau bahkan tidak tersedia. Seorang wartawan melukiskan permukiman ini sebagai ”tempat yang sangat buruk yang hanya mampu ditinggali oleh [buruh tani]”.

Tiga tahun yang lalu, ketika para pejabat mulai menutup sebagian kecil permukiman itu, beberapa keluarga menjual karavan mereka dan pindah ke perumahan, rumah susun, dan garasi yang sudah padat di pusat kota. Yang lainnya hanya berkemas dan pindah ke daerah lain untuk mencari sebuah tempat ke mana mereka dapat pulang setelah setiap panen—sebuah tempat yang dapat mereka sebut rumah.

Apakah Anda membayangkan suatu tempat di Amerika Tengah atau Selatan? Jangan salah. Anda dapat menemukan kamp karavan ini di dekat kota Mecca di sebelah selatan Kalifornia, AS, yang jauhnya kurang dari satu jam berkendara ke arah timur dari kota Palm Springs yang makmur. Meskipun kini lebih banyak orang di Amerika Serikat yang memiliki rumah dibanding dahulu dan pendapatan rata-rata keluarga kelas menengah pada tahun 2002 sekitar 42.000 dolar AS, diperkirakan lebih dari lima juta keluarga Amerika masih tinggal di perumahan yang tidak memadai.

Keadaannya jauh lebih serius di negara-negara berkembang. Tidak soal adanya sejumlah gerakan politik, sosial, dan agama, krisis perumahan global terus bertambah parah.

Krisis Global

Di seluruh dunia, jumlah orang yang tinggal di daerah kumuh diperkirakan lebih dari semiliar. Para pakar urbanisasi di Brasil takut kalau-kalau favela, atau daerah kumuh, yang terus bertambah di negeri itu akan segera ”menjadi lebih besar dan lebih padat penduduknya daripada kota-kota di mana daerah kumuh itu semula berdiri”. Ada kota-kota di Nigeria yang lebih dari 80 persen penduduknya tinggal di berbagai daerah kumuh dan permukiman liar. ”Jika tindakan serius tidak diambil,” kata sekretaris jenderal PBB Kofi Annan pada tahun 2003, ”jumlah pemukim daerah kumuh di seluruh dunia diprakirakan melonjak menjadi 2 miliar orang selama 30 tahun ke depan.”

Akan tetapi, statistik seperti ini bahkan belum menyingkapkan sepenuhnya dampak yang menghancurkan dari kondisi hidup di bawah standar terhadap kaum miskin di seluruh dunia. Menurut PBB, lebih dari separuh penduduk di negara-negara berkembang tidak memiliki sanitasi dasar, sepertiga tidak mendapatkan air bersih, seperempat tidak memiliki rumah yang memadai, dan seperlima tidak memperoleh layanan kesehatan modern. Kebanyakan orang di negara-negara maju bahkan tidak akan membiarkan hewan piaraan mereka hidup dalam kondisi seperti itu.

[Blurb] Meskipun beberapa bangsa sedang berupaya membuat koloni di bulan, banyak warga mereka yang tidak memiliki tempat yang layak untuk tinggal di bumi.

Hak Universal

Penaungan yang memadai secara umum dianggap sebagai kebutuhan dasar manusia. Deklarasi Universal Hak Asasi Manusia, yang diberlakukan PBB pada tahun 1948, menyatakan bahwa setiap orang berhak atas standar kehidupan yang memadai, termasuk perumahan yang memuaskan. Memang, setiap orang membutuhkan rumah yang layak.

Belum lama ini, pada tahun 1996, sejumlah negara memberlakukan apa yang belakangan dikenal sebagai dokumen Habitat Agenda PBB. Dokumen ini menguraikan komitmen yang spesifik untuk menyediakan penaungan yang memadai bagi semua orang. Setelah itu, pada tanggal 1 Januari 2002, PBB mengukuhkan komitmen ini lebih lanjut dengan mengesahkan agenda ini menjadi program resmi PBB.

Ironisnya, sebagian orang di negeri-negeri terkaya kembali memperbarui seruan untuk membangun koloni-koloni di bulan dan menjelajahi Mars, padahal semakin banyak warga miskin yang bahkan tidak memiliki tempat yang layak untuk tinggal di bumi ini. Bagaimana krisis perumahan mempengaruhi Anda? Adakah harapan yang nyata bahwa suatu hari kelak semua orang akan memiliki sendiri rumah yang nyaman? Selengkapnya..... click.

The Global Housing Crisis—Is There a Solution?

A growing number of people cannot afford a decent place to live. How does the housing crisis affect you? What can be done?

(Left to Right) Haiti, Bangladesh, Haiti, Zimbabwe, Russia, Afganistan-Unknown Photographer

(Left to Right: India-Adam Hilton, Brasil-Alfredo D'Amato, China-Mark Henley, Japan/Homeless Men-Christian Burkert, Christian Burkert, Yemen-Unknown Photographer, Japan-Christian Burkert

(Left to Right: Pland-Witold Krassowski, Democratic Republic Congo/a criticaly ill women in

Kiribati-Christian Burkert, Mozambique/sleepingon the street-Fred Hoogervorst, Poland-Witold

Krassowski, USA/a homeless US Army-Tom Pliston, Costa Rica/homless men sleeping on the

plaza simon-Dieter Telemans

(Left to Right: India-G.M.B. Akash, Indonesia-Mark Henley, Burma-Alayung Thaksin,

Kosovo-George Georgiou, Bangladesh-G.M.B Akash, Malaysia-Mark Henley

Singapore/men sleeping on an upper floor of a multy storey car park-Mark Henley,

United Kingdom-David Rose, Armenia-Tim Driven, Liberia-Tim Driven

(Left to Right: Philippines-Mikkel Ostergaard, Indonesia-Mark

Henley, Mexico-Mark Henley, Indonesia-Mark Henley

Collection by PANOS PICTURE, Photo's of Kolase by Iblogronnp.Com

A growing number of people cannot afford a decent place to live. How does the housing crisis affect you? What can be done?

Everyone Needs a Home
“Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including . . . housing.”—Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 25.

A LARGE migrant farmworker population has gradually settled in an area they now call home. Hundreds of families reside just outside town in low-rent trailer camps called parqueaderos. Here such basic services as sewage disposal, a reliable water supply, and garbage removal are rudimentary at best or even nonexistent. One reporter described this settlement as “a place so poor [farmworkers] could afford to live there.”

Three years ago, when officials started closing down a few of the sites, some of the families sold their trailers and moved into the already overcrowded houses, apartments, and garages in the center of town. Others simply picked up and moved on, in search of a place they could come back to after each harvest—somewhere they could call home.

Are you picturing some place in Central or South America? Think again. You could find this trailer camp near the town of Mecca in southern California, U.S.A., less than an hour’s drive east of the affluent city of Palm Springs. Although home ownership in the United States is said to be at an all-time high and the median family income in 2002 was about $42,000, it has been estimated that more than five million American families still live in inadequate housing.

The situation is much more serious in developing lands. Despite a number of political, social, and religious initiatives, the global housing crisis is steadily getting worse.

[Blurb] While some nations look into colonizing the moon, many of their citizens lack a decent place to live on earth

A Global Crisis

The number of people living in slums worldwide is estimated to be more than a billion. Brazilian experts in urbanization fear that the ever-growing favelas, or slums, in that country will soon “become larger and more populous than the cities in which they were first established.” There are Nigerian cities where more than 80 percent of the population live in slums and squatter settlements. “If no serious action is taken,” said UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2003, “the number of slum dwellers worldwide is projected to rise over the next 30 years to about 2 billion.”

Cold statistics like these, however, do not even begin to communicate the devastating personal toll that substandard living conditions exact on the world’s poor. According to the United Nations, more than half the people in developing countries lack basic sanitation, a third do not have access to clean water, a quarter lack adequate housing, and a fifth do not have access to modern health services. Most people in developed lands would not even let their pets live in conditions like that.

A Universal Right

Suitable shelter is commonly accepted as a basic human need. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, declared that everyone has the right to an adequate standard of living, including satisfactory housing. Indeed, everyone needs a decent home.

More recently, in 1996, a number of countries adopted what came to be known as the UN’s Habitat Agenda. This document outlines specific commitments to provide adequate shelter for all. Thereafter, on January 1, 2002, the UN strengthened this commitment further by formalizing this agenda into a full-fledged UN program.

It is ironic that just as some of the richest nations have begun renewing calls to build colonies on the moon and explore Mars, growing numbers of their poorest citizens cannot even afford a decent place to live here on earth. How does the housing crisis affect you? Is there any real hope that one day all will have their own comfortable home?

What Is Behind the Housing Crisis?

ON THE outskirts of a large African city, 36-year-old Josephine lives with her three boys, ranging from 6 to 11 years of age. To make a living, she collects empty plastic containers, which she sells to a nearby recycling plant. This backbreaking labor earns her less than two dollars a day. In that city, this is hardly enough to feed her family or pay for their schooling.

At the end of the day, she returns to what she is forced to call home. Its walls are made of baked mud bricks and clay held together by thin twigs. Loose, rusty iron sheets, along with tin and plastic, serve as a roof. Pieces of rock, wood, and old metal plates are stacked on top to keep the roof in place during strong winds. Her “door” and “window” are torn gunnysacks, which offer no real resistance to bad weather—let alone would-be intruders.

Even this modest home, though, does not truly belong to her. Josephine and her children live in constant fear of eviction. The land on which their inadequate home stands is to be used for the expansion of a nearby road. Sad to say, similar situations exist in many lands throughout the world.

A Toxic Home

In “poverty housing,” says Robin Shell, a senior official of an international housing assistance program, “children are ashamed of the house, . . . the family is always getting sick, and . . . they never know when a government official or landlord might come and sweep away [their home].”

Living in such conditions forces parents to worry constantly about the health and safety of their children. Instead of being able to work to better their situation, they often end up spending the majority of their time and energy struggling to meet their children’s basic needs, such as food, rest, and shelter.

Looking on from a distance, it might be easy to conclude that the poor could remedy their situation if they showed more initiative. But merely telling people to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps is not the answer. There are powerful factors involved in the housing crisis that are beyond any individual’s control. Researchers point to population growth, rapid urbanization, natural disasters, political upheaval, and persistent poverty as the main culprits. Like the five fingers of a clenched fist, these forces are squeezing the life out of many of the world’s poor.

Population Pressures

It is generally estimated that each year the world needs to house an additional 68 million to 80 million people. According to the United Nations Population Fund, world population passed 6.1 billion in 2001 and is expected to reach between 7.9 and 10.9 billion by 2050. Even more sobering, 98 percent of that growth during the next two decades is forecast to occur in developing countries. Those estimates in themselves represent a formidable housing challenge. Yet, that challenge is further complicated by the fact that the fastest growing areas in most countries are the already overcrowded cities.

Relentless Urbanization

Major cities—such as New York, London, and Tokyo—are often viewed as vital symbols of a country’s economic growth. As a result, thousands of rural people annually flock to such ‘greener urban pastures,’ mainly to seek education and employment.

In China, for example, the economy is expanding rapidly. As a result, one report estimates, over the next few decades, more than 200 million new housing units will be needed in the major urban areas alone. That is almost twice the total number of housing units that currently exist in the entire United States. What housing program could possibly keep up with such demand?

According to the World Bank, “each year, some 12 to 15 million new households, requiring an equivalent number of dwellings, are added to the cities of the developing world.” Since not enough affordable housing exists, these urban poor are forced to find shelter where they can, often where no one else chooses to live.

>>>>><<<<<

YOUR HOUSE AND YOUR HEALTH

According to the World Health Organization, in general, to promote good health, a house should have at least the following items:

▪ A good roof to keep out the rain

▪ Good walls and doors to protect against bad weather and to keep out animals

▪ Screens of wire netting at the windows and doors to keep out insects, especially mosquitoes

▪ Sunshades all around to protect the walls from direct sunlight in hot weather

>>>>><<<<<

Natural and Political Disasters

Poverty has forced many to occupy areas prone to floods, mud slides, and earthquakes. For example, it is estimated that in Caracas, Venezuela, over half a million people “live in squatter settlements on steep slopes that are continuously affected by landslides.” Recall, too, the 1984 industrial accident at Bhopal, India, where several thousand people were killed and many more injured. Why the high human toll? Primarily, it was because a nearby shantytown had grown to within just 15 feet [5 m] of the factory’s boundary.

Political disasters, such as civil wars, are also increasingly responsible for housing problems. One report published in 2002 by a human rights group pointed out that between 1984 and 1999, as many as 1.5 million people, mainly villagers, may have been displaced in southeast Turkey during civil strife. Many of them were forced to find shelter wherever they could, often crowding in with relatives and neighbors in makeshift dwellings, rented accommodations, agricultural buildings, or construction sites. One group of families was reportedly living in stables, with 13 or more to a room, using a communal toilet and a single water tap in the courtyard. “We want to get out of this life,” one of the refugees said. “We live in a place built for animals.”

Economic Stagnation

Finally, the relationship between housing and the economics of poverty cannot be overestimated. According to the World Bank report referred to earlier, in 1988 alone, 330 million urban dwellers in developing countries were said to be poor, a situation that was not expected to change much in the following years. When people are too poor to afford such basic necessities as food and clothing, how can they afford to rent or build a decent house?

High interest rates and inflation push bank-loan payments far out of the reach of many families, and soaring utility costs make it difficult for people to get ahead. Unemployment rates as high as 20 percent in some lands make it almost impossible to make ends meet.

These and other factors have forced hundreds of millions in every corner of the earth to settle for substandard housing. People live in old buses, shipping containers, and cardboard boxes. They live under staircases, plastic sheeting, and scraps of used lumber. Even abandoned industrial sites have become settlements for some.

TRADITIONAL RURAL AFRICAN HOUSES

For many years traditional African houses dotted the landscape. They came in different sizes and shapes. Some communities, such as the Kikuyu and Luo of Kenya, preferred circular walls and a thatched conical roof. Others, including the Masai of Kenya and Tanzania, adopted a somewhat rectangular shape. In coastal areas of East Africa, some of the houses had a thatched roof that touched the ground and resembled a beehive.

Since much of the construction material used in such structures was readily available, housing problems were few. Mud could be obtained by simply mixing soil and water. The many forests nearby made it possible for wood, grass, reeds, and bamboo leaves to be obtained easily. So, regardless of how rich or poor a family was, acquiring their own house was generally within reach.

Of course, such houses also had their disadvantages. Since most roofs were made of flammable materials, they posed a high risk of fire. Also, an intruder could easily gain access into the house by simply boring a hole through the mud wall. Not surprisingly, therefore, in many areas today, traditional African homes are slowly giving way to other more durable types of construction.

[Credit Lines] Source: African Traditional Architecture/ Huts: Courtesy Bomas of Kenya Ltd-A Cultural, Conference, and Entertainment Center

What Is Being Done?

Substantial efforts are already being made by many concerned individuals, organizations, and governments to address the crisis. In Japan, several agencies have been set up to help construct affordable houses. A housing program initiated in South Africa in 1994 has seen the erection of more than a million four-room houses. In Kenya the aim of an ambitious housing policy is to construct 150,000 housing units in urban areas and twice as many in rural areas each year. Other countries, such as Madagascar, have directed their efforts toward identifying construction methods that will result in inexpensive housing.

International organizations, such as UN-HABITAT, have been set up to show the world’s commitment to “prevent and ameliorate problems stemming from massive urban growth.” Nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations are also trying to help. One nonprofit organization has helped more than 150,000 households in various lands work their way out of substandard housing. By 2005, it estimates that it will have helped a million people to find simple, decent, affordable housing.

Many of these organizations have developed readily available, practical information to assist people living in substandard housing conditions to make the best of their circumstances or even to better them. Certainly, if you find yourself needing help, you can take full advantage of these provisions. There are also many basic things that you can do to help yourself.—See the box “Your House and Your Health,” on page 7.

Regardless of whether you can improve your personal situation, there is little hope that any one person or human organization can unclench the fist of global forces shaping this crisis. The international community finds itself falling further and further behind the urgent and growing demand for economic development and humanitarian aid. Each year millions of children are born into this downward spiral of poverty. Is there any real hope for a permanent solution? The following articles : Good Housing for All~At Last!

Appeared in Awake! September 22, 2005/No online in situs Jehovah's Witnesses Official Web Site

Usia Lanjut—Menghadapi Tantangannya

Pertimbangkan pengalaman berikut ini: Tentang Kaum Lansia Diabaikan dan Tertindas
KETIKA sedang meronda, seorang penjaga malam dikejutkan oleh pemandangan yang mencekam. Di dekat sebuah kompleks perumahan mewah, ia menemukan dua sosok tubuh yang tak bernyawa—sepasang suami istri lansia yang telah melompat dari apartemen mereka di tingkat delapan. Meskipun tindakan bunuh diri mereka mengejutkan, motifnya lebih menggegerkan lagi. Secarik kertas di saku sang suami menyatakan, ”Kami mengakhiri hidup kami karena terus-menerus ditindas dan dirongrong oleh putra dan menantu kami.”

Perincian kisah ini mungkin tidak umum, namun permasalahannya yang mendasar sudah lazim dan meresahkan. Sesungguhnya, perlakuan buruk atas kaum lansia menjangkiti hampir setiap bagian bola bumi ini. Perhatikan laporan berikut:

• Dalam sebuah penelitian, 4 persen kaum lansia di Kanada dilaporkan telah dianiaya atau dieksploitasi—biasanya oleh anggota keluarganya. Akan tetapi, banyak lansia merasa begitu malu atau begitu takut untuk berbicara tentang kemalangan mereka. Angka sebenarnya mungkin mendekati 10 persen, kata para pakar.

• ”Bangsa India, walaupun ikatan keluarganya tampak kuat, berada di ambang kehancuran karena semakin banyak lansia tidak diinginkan oleh anak-anak mereka,” lapor majalah India Today.

• Berdasarkan perkiraan yang berhasil dikumpulkan, ”antara 1 dan 2 juta orang Amerika usia 65 tahun atau lebih telah dicederai, dieksploitasi, atau dengan satu atau lain cara diperlakukan dengan buruk oleh orang yang seyogianya merawat atau melindungi mereka”, kata Pusat Penanganan Penganiayaan Kaum Lansia Nasional. Seorang wakil jaksa distrik di San Diego, Kalifornia, menyebut penganiayaan lansia sebagai ”salah satu masalah paling serius yang dihadapi para penegak hukum dewasa ini”. Ia menambahkan, ”Saya melihat problem ini semakin bertambah dalam beberapa tahun ke depan.”

• Di Canterbury, Selandia Baru, orang semakin khawatir bahwa lansia menjadi incaran anggota keluarganya—khususnya oleh mereka yang bermasalah dengan narkoba, alkohol, atau judi. Jumlah kasus penganiayaan lansia yang dilaporkan di Canterbury melonjak secara dramatis dari 65 pada tahun 2002 menjadi 107 pada tahun 2003. Direktur pelaksana sebuah lembaga yang didirikan untuk mencegah penganiayaan demikian mengatakan bahwa angka ini mungkin hanya sebagian kecil dari jumlah yang sesungguhnya.

• Federasi Asosiasi Pengacara Jepang menyatakan bahwa ”korban yang sudah lansia perlu lebih diperhatikan daripada korban penganiayaan anak atau kekerasan lainnya dalam rumah tangga”, lapor The Japan Times. Mengapa? Salah satu alasan, kata Times, adalah bahwa ”dibandingkan dengan penganiayaan anak atau teman hidup, penganiayaan lansia cenderung lebih lama ketahuan, sebagian karena para lansia merasa bertanggung jawab bila pelaku kekerasan itu adalah anak cucu mereka sendiri, dan juga karena sejauh ini pemerintah dan pejabat setempat lalai menangani problem tersebut”.

Beberapa contoh mengenai apa yang sedang terjadi di seputar dunia ini membuat kita bertanya: Mengapa begitu banyak lansia diabaikan dan tertindas? Adakah harapan bahwa keadaan akan membaik? Adakah penghiburan bagi lansia? [c-link solusi selengkapnya untuk laporan diatas, Jangan pernah berpikir bahwa Pencipta tidak memedulikan kaum lansia]

Bagaimana kita dapat menghadapi tantangan karena bertambahnya usia? Kami menyajikan saran-saran agar usia lanjut lebih mudah dijalani.

Tahun-Tahun Keemasan?

PUKUL 06.30 pada suatu pagi di musim dingin di Soweto, Afrika Selatan. Evelyn* harus bangun dari tempat tidurnya. Di rumahnya yang tanpa pemanas pusat, dinginnya sungguh menyiksa.

Dengan hati-hati, ia menggeser lututnya yang nyeri karena artritis ke pinggir tempat tidur. Lalu, ia duduk dan beristirahat. Lambat laun rasa nyerinya mereda. Setelah mengumpulkan tenaga, Evelyn pun berdiri. Ia mengerang kesakitan. Dengan tangan di pinggul, persis seperti ”belalang-lompat menyeret dirinya”, Evelyn berjalan terseok-seok ke kamar mandi.—Pengkhotbah 12:5. #
’Akhirnya berhasil juga!’ kata Evelyn kepada dirinya. Ia tidak hanya bisa melihat hari yang baru, tetapi juga dapat menggerakkan tubuhnya yang sakit.

Namun, ada hal lain lagi yang ia cemaskan. ”Jangan-jangan pikiran saya sudah ’melenceng’,” kata Evelyn. Ia kadang-kadang lupa di mana ia menaruh kunci, namun pikirannya masih tajam. ”Saya hanya berdoa agar jangan sampai menjadi pikun,” kata Evelyn, ”seperti beberapa orang lanjut usia.”

Sewaktu masih muda, tidak pernah terpikir oleh Evelyn bagaimana jadinya jika sudah tua. Tahu-tahu, waktu sepertinya berlalu begitu saja, dan sekarang tubuhnya yang renta selalu mengingatkan bahwa ia sudah berumur 74 tahun.

Beberapa orang yang keadaannya lebih baik daripada Evelyn dan relatif bebas dari penyakit serius serta stres dapat menganggap usia lanjut mereka sebagai tahun-tahun keemasan. Seperti sang patriark Abraham, mereka mungkin mencapai ”usia yang sangat tua, tua dan puas”. (Kejadian 25:8) Yang lain-lain mengalami ”tahun-tahun penuh sengsara” dan hanya dapat mengatakan, ”Hidupku tidak bahagia.” (Pengkhotbah 12:1, Bahasa Indonesia Sehari-hari) Menurut sebuah survei, begitu banyak orang memandang masa pensiun dengan pesimis sehingga majalah Newsweek menyarankan agar istilah tahun-tahun keemasan diganti menjadi ”Tahun-Tahun Kegelapan”.

Bagaimana Anda memandang usia lanjut? Tantangan apa saja yang dihadapi kaum lansia? Apakah kemunduran mental tidak terelakkan pada usia lanjut? Apa yang dapat dilakukan untuk meningkatkan kedamaian pikiran selama tahun-tahun keemasan ini?
SELENGKAPNYA [C-LINK]
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[Catatan Kaki]
* Beberapa nama dalam seri ini telah diubah.
# Kutipan di atas dari buku Pengkhotbah dalam Alkitab telah lama diakui sebagai uraian puitis yang tepat tentang kesukaran karena penuaan.

The “Jewel of the Sea”

Diatoms, microscopic algae that encase themselves in ornate, exquisitely patterned glass shells, are found in prolific numbers in every ocean on earth. They have fascinated scientists for centuries—in fact, ever since the microscope was first invented and men could sketch their beauty. Justifiably, the diatom is called the jewel of the sea.

Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite in the 1860’s, used silica from diatoms to stabilize nitroglycerin, which enabled him to form portable sticks of the explosive. Fossilized diatom shells are used commercially in many ways today—for example, to illuminate road paint, purify wine, and filter swimming pool water.

Far more important, though, is the fact that these tiny one-celled plants account for one fourth of the photosynthesis on our planet. Researchers Allen Milligan and Francois Morel, of Princeton University, U.S.A., have found that silica in the diatom’s glass shell causes chemical changes in the water inside it, creating an ideal environment for photosynthesis. The reason the glass is so ornate, scientists believe, is that a greater surface area is thus exposed to the water inside the cell, making photosynthesis more efficient. Just how these minute but beautiful cases are formed from silicon dissolved in seawater is still a mystery, but what researchers do know is that by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen, diatoms play a vital role in sustaining life on earth, perhaps an even more important role than most land plants.

Morel rates diatoms “among the most successful organisms on earth.” Milligan adds that without their appetite for carbon dioxide, “the greenhouse effect might be much more severe.”

When diatoms die, their carbon remains sink to the ocean floor and eventually fossilize. Some scientists believe that in this form, under intense pressure, diatoms have contributed to the world’s oil reserves. Concern is growing, however, that as seawater temperatures rise because of global warming, this allows bacteria to eat the diatoms’ remains before they can sink, and carbon is released back into the surface water. Thus, even this tiny “jewel of the sea” is part of a marvelously designed life-sustaining system that could now be under threat.

Appeared in Awake! June 2004/[Picture Credit Line on this page ]© Dr. Stanley Flegler/Visuals Unlimited

In this series to bahasa:”Permata di Dalam Laut”

Related topics: Karang Penghalang Belize—Kawasan Warisan Dunia

Oil—How Do We Get It?

Artikel ini dalam bahasa Indonesia C-link.“LET there be light.” In the United States in the 19th century, a new source of artificial light was needed to replace the inconveniences of flickering light produced by fats, whale oil, and other substances. What was the solution? Oil! Where could it be found?

The Replics of First crude-oil well,

Titusville,Pennsylvania, 1859

Oil gushing out of a well in Texas

In 1859, Edwin L. Drake, a retired railroad conductor, using an old steam engine, drilled a well 70 feet [22 meters] deep to the first crude oil discovered near Titusville, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. That marked the beginning of the oil era. As oil was discovered in many parts of the world, it caused great economic and political repercussions. It proved to be the high-quality source of artificial light that the world eagerly awaited.

Soon, frantic buying of land and drilling of wells was a major activity in the so-called oil regions of the United States. In those years it was common to hear of people who suddenly became wealthy and of others who later lost their fortunes. Ironically, Edwin Drake, the man who drilled the first well in Pennsylvania, was one of the latter.

Despite its extraordinary boom, or perhaps because of it, the oil industry in Pennsylvania soon experienced its first drop. Oil fell from $20 a barrel to 10 cents! Overproduction and speculation made prices collapse, and some wells rapidly became exhausted. A special reminder of those times is Pithole City, Pennsylvania, which today is a ghost town. It was established, it flourished, and it was deserted—all within the span of little more than one and a half years. Those ups and downs would become an integral part of oil history.

In 1870, John D. Rockefeller and a few associates incorporated the Standard Oil Company. This company dominated the kerosene market until competitors appeared, especially in the Russian oil industry. One rival was Marcus Samuel, a founder of what is today known as the Royal Dutch/Shell Group. In addition, as a result of the ingenuity of the Nobel brothers,* a powerful oil enterprise was established in Russia with the oil extracted from fields in Baku.

Those were the beginnings of the history of a series of oil enterprises. Since then, alliances and organizations have been created to avoid the price and production instability of the early times. One of them is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), whose 11 members collectively possess most of the world’s proven crude-oil reserves.—See MAIN SOURCES OF OIL

How Much Oil, and Where Is It?

By the end of the 19th century, the widespread use of electricity could have meant bankruptcy for the oil enterprises. However, another outstanding invention had drastically reversed the situation—the internal-combustion engine, used mainly in automobiles. Gasoline, a petroleum derivative, was now essential for self-propelled vehicles, which were already available in most industrialized nations by the late 1920’s. Now much more oil was needed to keep the world moving, but where would it be found?

BARRELS OR TONS?
The first Pennsylvania oil companies shipped oil in 48-gallon [180 L] wine barrels. Eventually only 42 gallons [159 L] of oil was put in to allow for spillage during shipment. A barrel (42 gallons) is still used today for oil commerce.
From the beginning, oil for Europe was transported by sea and was usually measured by weight, in tons, as is the practice today.

With passing years, oil’s supremacy in the global market has been reinforced by the ongoing discovery of new oil fields in various parts of the world—some 50,000 of them! But in terms of production, the important factor is, not the number of fields discovered, but their size. How big are they?

Oil fields that contain at least five billion barrels of recoverable oil—called supergiants—are the largest in the classification, while the second largest (from five hundred million to five billion barrels) are called world-class giants. Although some 70 countries are listed in the “U.S. Geological Survey World Petroleum Assessment 2000” as having some oil reserves, only a few of them have giant oil fields. The largest number of supergiant oil fields are grouped in the Arabian-Iranian sedimentary basin, which comprises the area in and around the Persian Gulf.

The search for new oil sources has not stopped. Instead, it has been reinforced by state-of-the-art technology. Currently the Caspian Sea region, made up of the nations of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, has caught the attention of oil producers. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, this region has huge potential for the exploitation of oil and natural gas. Alternative exportation routes, such as through Afghanistan, are being studied. Additional potential has also been found in the Middle East, Greenland, and parts of Africa. The conversion of discovered hydrocarbons into energy and items for use in everyday life is a story in itself.

How Is Oil Extracted?

Geologists and surveyors search for places where crude oil could be trapped underground. After performing some specific measurements and taking samples, they drill to confirm that there is actually oil. In the early days, successfully hitting an oil field might have meant being showered by a gusher of mud and oil, with the consequent loss of the initial outpouring and the risk of explosion. However, by means of measuring instruments and special valves, today’s drilling rigs prevent this from happening. Smaller and deeper drillings are also possible today.

Eventually, the pressure that makes the oil and gas emerge decreases, and it must be maintained by the injection of water, chemicals, carbon dioxide, or other gases, such as nitrogen. Depending on the zone, oil can have different degrees of density. Naturally, light oil is by far preferred, for it is easier to obtain and refine.

As explained by the American Petroleum Institute, modern technology includes horizontal drilling, done virtually parallel to the earth’s crust, which reduces the number of wells that must be bored. Offshore extraction, which began in 1947 in the Gulf of Mexico, greatly increased oil production. Of course, the extraction method used has a direct effect on the price of the final product.#

HOW DID PETROLEUM FORM?:

The opinion that has prevailed among most scientists since the 1870’s is called the biogenic theory. This “holds that biological debris buried in sediments decays into oil and natural gas in the long course of time and that this petroleum then becomes concentrated in the pore space of sedimentary rocks in the uppermost layers of the [Earth’s] crust.” This process then produces petroleum, whose main components are hydrocarbons—that is, hydrogen and carbon. However, since the 1970’s this theory has at times been challenged by some scientists.
In the August 20, 2002, issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the article “The Genesis of Hydrocarbons and the Origin of Petroleum” was published. The authors argue that the origin of natural petroleum must occur at depths that are “well into the mantle of the Earth” and not at the much shallower depths generally accepted.
Physicist Thomas Gold has suggested some controversial theories and explains his reasons in detail in his book The Deep Hot Biosphere—The Myth of Fossil Fuels. He writes: “The theory of the biological origin of hydrocarbons was so favored in the United States and in much of Europe that it effectively shut out work on the opposing viewpoint. This was not the case in the countries of the former Soviet Union.” That was “probably because the revered Russian chemist Mendeleyev had supported the abiogenic [not biological] view. The arguments he presented are even stronger today, given the greatly expanded information we now have.” What is the abiogenic view?
Gold states: “The abiogenic theory holds that hydrocarbons were a component of the material that formed the earth, through accretion of solids, some 4.5 billion years ago.” According to this theory, the elements of petroleum have been deep in the earth since the earth’s formation.*

_____
[Footnote]
*Awake! does not take a position on differing theories. It merely reports them.

How Is Oil Transported?

Trasnporting barrels of oils
In 1863 in Pennsylvania, small-diameter wooden pipelines were built for transporting oil, as they were cheaper and less cumbersome to use than 42-gallon [159 L] barrels moved on horse carts.% Today’s pipeline systems have evolved and multiplied. According to the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, the United States alone has a network of 200,000 miles [300,000 km] of petroleum pipeline!

Such pipeline systems, mainly made of metal, transport not only crude oil to refineries but also final oil products to distributors. Modern pipeline technology allows for automated systems that monitor flow and pressure. So-called intelligent pigs (devices used to inspect hundreds of miles of pipeline), Magnetic Flux Leakage inspection, and ultrasonic in-line inspection have also been developed. Yet, all that the ordinary user of the final products will probably see is a sign indicating that a petroleum pipeline lies underground and warning that no digging should be done at the site.

As useful as it is, though, a pipeline system is not practical for the transportation of large quantities of oil overseas. But early oil entrepreneurs found a solution for that too—immense oil tankers. These are specially designed ships as much as a quarter of a mile long [400 meters long]. Tankers are the largest ships to sail the oceans and are able to carry up to a million or more barrels of oil. Unfortunately, as mighty as they look, tankers have a vulnerability that has not been surmounted, as the box “About Oil Spills” shows. Barges and railcars are also common means of bulk oil transportation. Nevertheless, in oil’s journey, transportation is only half the story.

A small flame coming from a tall pipe stack, or flare—which acts as a safety valve—is a good indication that you are looking at an oil refinery. Basically, in these huge refining facilities, crude oil is heated and sent to an atmospheric distillation tower, where it is separated into several fractions. These fractions range from the lightest—gases, such as butane—to the heaviest, which are processed into lubricants, among other products. (See OIL PRODUCTION—SIMPLIFIED-BAGAN) But this still leaves the question, Is oil a mixed blessing?

To Link : Oil~A Blessing and Curse? then "Oil~Will It Ever Run Out?"

To Link : to Alternative Energy (in Bahasa)
To situs in Awake! of Related Topic: Finding the Source of ALL ENERGY situs web online on Jehovah's Witnesses Official Web Site

UnOnline on situs web Watchtower.Org Howeveroyou can read to publication Awake! in appeared 8 November 2003 (Now!~Approximately to printed of 38.400.000 in 82 languages)

______
[Footnotes]
* One of them, Alfred Bernhard Nobel, would later become the founder of the Nobel Prizes.
# “A guyed tower constructed in more than 300 metres [1,000 feet] of water in the Gulf of Mexico has been estimated to produce oil at about 65 times the production cost in the Middle East.”—The Encyclopædia Britannica.
% In the early days, oil was stored and transported in wooden barrels, the same as those used for wine.



MAIN SOURCES OF OIL (in Bahasa)
Total amounts are in billions of barrels. This does not include undiscovered resources
▪ OPEC member
• Country that has one or more supergiant fields
Cumulative production
♦ Reserves
▪ • ♦ 332.7 SAUDI ARABIA
• ♦ 216.5 UNITED STATES
• ♦ 192.6 RUSSIA
▪ • ♦ 135.9 IRAN
▪ • ♦ 130.6 VENEZUELA
▪ • ♦ 125.1 KUWAIT
▪ • ♦ 122.8 IRAQ
▪ • ♦ 113.3 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
• ♦ 70.9 MEXICO
• ♦ 42.9 CHINA
▪ • ♦ 41.9 LIBYA
▪ ♦ 33.4 NIGERIA
♦ 21.2 CANADA
▪ ♦ 21.0 INDONESIA
♦ 20.5 KAZAKHSTAN
▪ • ♦ 18.3 ALGERIA
♦ 17.6 NORWAY
♦ 16.9 UNITED KINGDOM


OIL PRODUCTION—SIMPLIFIED-(Bagan in bahasa Indonesia-Click picture for full viewer)

EXP:
SATELLITEThe Global Positioning System provides accurate signals used for surveying

1—EXPLORING
GEOPHONES
VIBRATOR TRUCK
HYDROPHONES
SEISMIC VESSEL
Seismic surveying, one method used, records the below-ground reflections of artificially generated sound waves
2—EXTRACTING
INLAND WELLS
OFFSHORE PLATFORM
UNDERWATER WELL
Extraction methods include the use of inland, offshore, and underwater oil wells. To maintain the pressure, gases or water may be injected
[Picture]
UNDERWATER OIL WELL
Remotely operated submarines are used to construct production facilities on the sea bottom
[Picture]

HORIZONTAL DRILLING
Motors controlled remotely by an engineer turn the drill bit, and sensors detect the rock properties
3—TRANSPORTING
PIPELINES
TANKER
Pipelines above the ground, below the ground, and under the sea transport the oil. Other methods of transport include tankers, barges, and railcars
4—REFINING
REFINERY
Crude oil is heated, distilled, and broken up into fractions that can be used to make everyday products

DISTILLATION TOWER
When sticky, dark crude oil is heated in the furnace, the hydrocarbons turn into gases. The gases condense back into liquids at different temperatures. Oil is thus separated into its parts, or fractions
68°F. → REFINERY GASES These include methane, ethane,
[20°C] propane, and butane
↑ ↑
70°-160°F. → GASOLINE Used as automobile fuel and as a
[20°-70°C] raw material for plastics
↑ ↑
160°-320°F. → NAPHTHA Can be made into plastics,
[70°-160°C] automobile fuel, and other
chemicals
↑ ↑
320°-480°F. → KEROSENE Made into jet fuel and stove oil
[160°-250°C]
↑ ↑
480°-660°F. → GAS OIL Made into diesel and furnace fuels
[250°-350°C]
↑ ↑
750°F. → RESIDUE Further processed into refinery
↑ ↑ fuels, heavy fuel oil, candle wax,
FURNACE greases, and asphalt

CATALYTIC CRACKER
The hydrocarbons are heated by steam and mixed with the hot catalyst of powdered alumina-silica gel. This process cracks, or breaks up, the hydrocarbons into smaller and more useful molecules
Powdered catalyst mixes with the hydrocarbon in steam
↓ ↓ ↓
ETHANOL

PLASTICS

GASOLINE ADDITIVES

(For fully formatted text, see publication)


ABOUT OIL SPILLS
▪ The total quantity of oil spilled by tankers between 1970 and 2000 is 5,322,000 tons
▪ The largest oil spill occurred in 1979 when the Atlantic Empress collided with the Aegean Captain in the Caribbean, resulting in a spill of 287,000 tons of oil
▪ The Exxon Valdez was only about the 34th-largest oil tanker spill
▪ Although most tanker spills result from operations such as loading, discharging, and bunkering, the largest spills are related to collisions and groundings
▪ Some major oil spills from causes other than tankers:
● Blowout of the exploratory well Ixtoc I in 1979, in the Gulf of Mexico. Total spilled: 140,000,000 gallons [500,000,000 L]
● Blowout of a platform in a well in the Persian Gulf in 1983. Total spilled: 80,000,000 gallons [300,000,000 L]
● Deliberate release in 1991, in the Persian Gulf. Total spilled: 240,000,000 gallons [900,000,000 L]
[Picture bellow]
Oil tanker “Erika” sinks near Penmarch Point, France, December 13, 1999
[Credit Lines]
Sources: International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Limited, “Oil Spill Intelligence Report,” “The Encarta Encyclopedia”

DILECEHKAN DI TEMPAT KERJA

Ijinkan iblogronnp menerbitkan surat Pembaca Awake!.

Saya pernah mengalami pelecehan selama beberapa tahun dan nyaris terkena stres berat. Saya akan berupaya sebisa-bisanya untuk menerapkan saran-saran Anda. C. H., Amerika Serikat >>>> Terima kasih karena telah menolong kami, korban pelecehan, dan juga membantu kami lebih mendekat kepada Pencipta kita yang beriba hati, yang mengetahui kesengsaraan kita. L. W., Amerika Serikat >>> Saya harus keluar dari pekerjaan karena sering dimaki-maki. Teruslah terbitkan artikel-artikel yang bisa membantu kami menanggulangi berbagai problem.T. Y., Jepang >>> Saya menawarkan terbitan ini kepada dokter saya, sambil berkata, ”Siapa tahu Anda akan menangani pasien yang mengeluhkan gangguan perut gara-gara dilecehkan.” Dia berkata, ”Bukan ’siapa tahu’ lagi. Saya sedang punya pasien seperti itu!” Sang dokter berjanji akan membaca artikel-artikel tersebut. E. S., Jerman >>> Karena belum punya apartemen sendiri, saya terpaksa tinggal dengan kakak perempuan saya dan sering dimaki-maki olehnya. Saya jadi sangat tertekan. Namun, terbitan Sedarlah! ini benar-benar pas untuk saya! Yehuwa betul-betul telah menghibur saya. S. A., Rusia >>> Atasan yang Menjadi Baik Selama lima tahun, saya bekerja untuk seorang pimpinan yang baik dan lembut. Lalu, perusahaan itu dijual, dan sekarang saya punya seorang atasan baru. Saya jadi sasaran pelampiasan kata-katanya yang kasar. Hinaan, cacian, dan fitnah menjadi makanan saya sehari-hari. Saya sangat tertekan dan stres. Kemudian, saya menerima terbitan 8 Mei 2004, dengan seri berjudul ”Dianiaya di Tempat Kerja—Bagaimana Anda Menghadapinya?” Majalah ini saya taruh di atas meja saya agar dia bisa melihat dan membacanya jika dia mau. Ternyata, dia membacanya. Sejak itu, sikapnya berubah drastis. Dia tidak lagi melecehkan saya. Dia bahkan berkata bahwa saya telah membuat kemajuan dalam pekerjaan. Sungguh lega rasanya! K.D.A., Pantai Gading >>> Dilecehkan di Tempat Kerja Saya sangat terkesan oleh seri ”Dilecehkan di Tempat Kerja—Bagaimana Anda Menghadapinya?” (8 Mei 2004) Saya pernah mengalami sendiri semua yang diuraikan dalam artikel itu. Saya merasakan diskriminasi agama di rumah sakit tempat saya bekerja, dan hal itu mempengaruhi kesehatan emosi dan rohani saya. Saya senang sewaktu tahu bahwa saya bukanlah satu-satunya orang yang mengalami hal yang sangat tidak menyenangkan ini. J. C., Puerto Riko

Tempat Kerja atau Medan Perang?

OLEH PENULIS SEDARLAH! DI JERMAN. ”Saya benar-benar tidak tahan lagi. Saya sudah bekerja di perusahaan itu selama lebih dari 30 tahun. Saya telah mencapai tingkat penyelia. Kemudian, datanglah bos yang baru. Ia muda, dinamis, dan penuh gagasan baru. Ia pikir saya menghalanginya, jadi ia mulai mencari-cari kesalahan saya. Setelah berbulan-bulan dihina, dibohongi, dan direndahkan, saya sudah tidak kuat lagi. Sewaktu perusahaan menawarkan pensiun, saya menyetujuinya.”—Peter.*

PETER adalah korban pelecehan di tempat kerja. Di Jerman, tempat Peter tinggal, diperkirakan 1,2 juta orang menderita pelecehan di tempat kerja. Di Belanda, 1 dari 4 orang akan menghadapinya pada suatu waktu selama masa kerja mereka. Dan, sebuah laporan oleh Organisasi Buruh Internasional mengatakan bahwa pelecehan merupakan masalah yang kian meningkat di Amerika Serikat, Australia, Austria, Denmark, Inggris, dan Swedia. Tetapi, apakah pelecehan itu?

”Perang Urat Saraf”

Menurut majalah berita Jerman Focus, pelecehan berarti ”gangguan yang sering, berulang, dan sistematis”. Ini bukan sekadar senda gurau di tempat kerja—yang mungkin mencakup sarkasme, kritik, olok-olokan, dan lelucon yang mempermalukan seseorang—pelecehan merupakan aksi teror psikologis yang terencana. Tujuannya adalah membuat korban tersisih.#

Taktik pelecehan berkisar dari sikap bermusuhan yang kekanak-kanakan hingga aksi kriminal yang mencelakakan. Korban difitnah, diumpat, dikasari, dan diperlakukan dengan dingin.

Beberapa korban sengaja dibebani banyak sekali pekerjaan atau selalu dipilih untuk melakukan tugas yang paling tidak menyenangkan yang tidak ingin dilakukan siapa pun. Rekan-rekan kerja mungkin menyabot upaya sang korban untuk bekerja dengan produktif, barangkali dengan menahan informasi. Dalam beberapa kasus, para pelaku menusuk ban mobil korban atau menerobos komputernya.
Beberapa korban pelecehan diincar oleh satu orang. Tetapi yang lebih sering, korban diserang oleh sekelompok rekan kerja.

Mungkin yang paling mengejutkan adalah fakta bahwa dalam banyak kasus, pelecehan terjadi dengan seizin bos. Dalam beberapa penelitian di Eropa, penyelia berperan aktif dalam sekitar 50 persen kasus, dan cukup sering ia terbukti sebagai satu-satunya dalang. Akibat semua hal ini, pengalaman kerja berubah menjadi apa yang diistilahkan oleh harian Jerman Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung ”perang urat saraf yang panjang dan menegangkan”.

Dampak di luar Tempat Kerja

Sering kali, dampak pelecehan tidak terbatas di tempat kerja. Banyak korban menderita problem kesehatan yang serius akibat perlakuan yang kejam. Depresi, gangguan tidur, dan serangan panik termasuk konsekuensi pelecehan. Bagaimana dengan Peter, yang disebutkan di awal? Harga dirinya benar-benar anjlok. Seorang wanita bernama Margaret, juga dari Jerman, dinasihati dokternya untuk mencari perawatan di klinik kesehatan mental. Penyebabnya? Pelecehan di tempat kerja. Pelecehan juga dapat berdampak negatif terhadap perkawinan atau kehidupan keluarga seseorang.

Di Jerman, pelecehan di tempat kerja telah menjadi begitu umum sehingga sebuah perusahaan asuransi kesehatan membuka jalur telepon untuk membantu para korban. Perusahaan ini mendapati bahwa lebih dari setengah penelepon tidak sanggup bekerja hingga enam minggu, sekitar sepertiganya hingga tiga bulan, dan lebih dari 10 persen selama lebih dari tiga bulan. Sebuah jurnal medis Jerman memperkirakan bahwa ”hingga 20 persen dari semua kasus bunuh diri diakibatkan oleh pelecehan”.

Jelaslah, pelecehan dapat menjadikan pengalaman kerja suatu mimpi buruk. Apakah ada cara untuk mencegahnya? Bagaimana perdamaian dapat dicapai di tempat kerja?

Cara Korban Dibidik

Monika baru tamat sekolah sewaktu ia mulai menjalani pelatihan sebagai pekerja kantoran di bidang hukum. Monika mengharapkan peralihan yang mulus ke dunia kerja.

Horst adalah seorang dokter berusia sekitar 35 tahun. Ia mempunyai istri dan anak-anak, dan kelihatannya ia akan memperoleh pengakuan dan pendapatan yang tinggi. Baik Monika maupun Horst menjadi korban pelecehan.

KASUS Monika dan Horst mengajar kita hikmah yang berharga: Korban pelecehan tidak mudah diprediksi. Ya, siapa pun, dalam pekerjaan apa pun bisa menjadi sasaran pelecehan. Lantas, bagaimana Anda dapat melindungi diri? Sebagian jawabannya terletak pada belajar cara berdamai di tempat kerja, bahkan dengan rekan-rekan kerja yang bermasalah.

Bergaul Serasi dengan Rekan Kerja. Bagi banyak orang, pekerjaannya menuntut kerja sama yang baik dengan sekelompok rekan kerja dan membantu tim tersebut berfungsi dengan mulus sebagai satu unit. Jika para kolega bisa saling bergaul serasi, pekerjaan dapat dilakukan dengan baik. Jika tidak, hasil pekerjaan tidak akan bagus dan risiko pelecehan meningkat.

Apa yang dapat mengganggu mulusnya pekerjaan sebuah tim pekerja? Salah satunya adalah seringnya terjadi pergantian personel. Dalam situasi seperti itu, ikatan persahabatan sulit terbentuk. Lagi pula, rekan-rekan yang baru belum terbiasa dengan kegiatan rutinnya, sehingga memperlambat kinerja semua orang. Jika beban kerja bertambah, kelompok tersebut kemungkinan besar akan terus-menerus mengalami stres.

Selain itu, jika sebuah tim tidak memiliki tujuan yang jelas, tidak akan ada rasa persatuan. Hal ini bisa terjadi, misalnya, sewaktu seorang bos yang kurang percaya diri lebih banyak menghabiskan waktunya untuk membela kedudukannya ketimbang memimpin. Ia mungkin bahkan berupaya tetap memegang kendali dengan mengadu domba para rekan kerja. Yang memperparah masalahnya ialah pengorganisasian kelompok tersebut mungkin sangat tidak jelas sehingga rekan kerja tertentu tidak memahami batas-batas tanggung jawabnya. Misalnya, konflik bisa timbul sewaktu dua pekerja berpikir bahwa mereka bertanggung jawab untuk ikut menandatangani faktur.

Dalam situasi demikian, komunikasi menjadi tegang dan rasa sakit hati sering kali tidak terselesaikan. Rasa cemburu meracuni atmosfer kerja, dan para rekan kerja saling bersaing mencari muka di depan bos. Kesalahpahaman sepele dipandang sebagai hinaan besar. Seolah-olah, gundukan berubah menjadi gunung. Inilah kondisi yang melahirkan pelecehan.

Pemilihan Kambing Hitam. Selama suatu waktu, seorang pekerja mungkin dijadikan kambing hitam. Orang seperti apa yang biasanya diperlakukan seperti itu? Kemungkinan seseorang yang tampak berbeda. Misalnya, ia bisa jadi adalah pria satu-satunya di lingkungan wanita atau wanita yang bekerja di lingkungan serbapria. Seseorang yang percaya diri mungkin dianggap agresif, sementara orang yang pendiam dapat dianggap penuh muslihat. Calon korbannya mungkin juga berbeda dalam arti ia lebih tua atau lebih muda daripada yang lainnya atau bahkan lebih cakap dalam bekerja.

Siapa pun yang menjadi kambing hitamnya, para rekan ”bersikap jahat dan lancang terhadap korban pilihan mereka dan dengan demikian merasakan kelegaan dari stres mereka sendiri”, lapor jurnal medis Jerman, mta. Upaya sang kambing hitam untuk memperbaiki situasinya tidak banyak berhasil dan mungkin bahkan memperburuk masalahnya. Karena intimidasi menjadi kian sering dan sistematis, sang kambing hitam menjadi kian terkucil. Pada taraf ini, korban pelecehan kemungkinan besar tidak sanggup lagi mengatasi situasinya sendirian.

Tentu saja, tempat kerja selalu berpotensi menjadi tempat terjadinya perlakuan buruk. Tetapi, banyak orang dapat mengingat masa manakala masih ada lebih banyak niat baik di antara rekan-rekan kerja. Pelecehan yang terorganisasi jarang berkembang. Tetapi, dari tahun ke tahun telah terjadi apa yang digambarkan oleh seorang dokter sebagai ”merosotnya semangat solidaritas secara umum dan erosi rasa malu pribadi secara besar-besaran”. Orang-orang sekarang sudah tidak lagi mempedulikan etika yang menahan mereka untuk terang-terangan berperang di tempat kerja.

Jadi, wajar apabila semua orang yang bekerja ingin mengetahui jawaban atas pertanyaan: Dapatkah pelecehan dicegah? Bagaimana perdamaian dapat dicapai di tempat kerja?
Judul link berikut. Mewujudkan Perdamaian di Tempat Kerja

To Link---> Jaminan dan Kepuasan Kerja Terancam

To Link--->Dapatkan dan Pertahankan Pekerjaan—Caranya?

To Link--->Menghadap Dunia yang Serbacepat Dewasa Ini

________
[Catatan Kaki]
* Nama-nama dalam seri artikel ini telah diubah.
# Statistik memperlihatkan bahwa lebih banyak wanita daripada pria yang menjadi korban pelecehan di tempat kerja, meski ini mungkin karena wanita lebih cenderung mengutarakan problem mereka dan mencari bantuan.

Victimized at Work—What Can You Do?

Let me appeared about Letter from Awake! readers.

I have experienced mobbing for several years and was close to having a nervous breakdown. I will do my best to apply your suggestions.
C. H., United States

Thank you for helping those of us who are being victimized and for assisting us in drawing closer to our compassionate God, who is aware of our plight.
L. W., United States

I had to quit my job because of verbal abuse. Please continue to publish articles that show us how to cope with problems.
T. Y., Japan

I offered the issue to my doctor, saying, “Perhaps one day you’ll have a patient complaining of stomach problems because of mobbing.” He said, “Not perhaps. I have a patient like that right now!” He promised to read the articles.
E. S., Germany

Since I don’t have my own apartment, I am forced to live with my sister and endure her verbal abuse. It has driven me to despondency. However, this issue of Awake! was just for me! Jehovah has truly comforted me.

S. A., Russia

Reformed Boss For five years I worked for a mild, compassionate man. Then the company was sold, and a new boss was put in charge. I became his verbal punching bag. Humiliation, insults, and lies were my daily lot. I was very depressed and stressed out. Then I received the May 8, 2004, issue with the series “Victimized at Work—What Can You Do?” I left a copy on my desk where he could see it and read it if he wanted to. He did. Since then his behavior has changed remarkably. He no longer harasses me. He even says that I have made progress in my work. What a relief! (surat pembaca 8 April 2005)
K.D.A., Côte d’Ivoire

Victimized at Work I was deeply touched by the series “Victimized at Work—What Can You Do?” (May, 8, 2004) I have personally experienced everything it described. I suffered religious discrimination at the hospital where I worked, and it affected my emotional and spiritual health. I am happy to know that I am not the only one who has had this very unpleasant experience.
J. C., Puerto Rico

Please Click to subtitle link @Table of Contents under title Victimized at Work—What Can You Do? "e-life guide" can help you cope with—and even prevent—harassment on the job.
3 (page of Awake! Journal) Workplace or War Zone?
5 How Victims Are Targeted
7 Pursuing Peace in the Workplace

Related Topics: Can You Be Happy and Secure inYOUR WORK?