Palembang, The Indonesia Post – The Governor of South Sumatra, H. Herman Deru (HD), attended and witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the South Sumatra Provincial Government and the Palembang High Religious Court, as well as Cooperation Agreements between regents/mayors across South Sumatra and local Religious Courts. The event took place at Griya Agung Palembang on Tuesday (July 22, 2025).
The agreement aims to strengthen synergy in preventing child marriage, protecting child custody rights, and safeguarding women’s rights after divorce. The initiative was pioneered by Governor Herman Deru together with the Palembang High Religious Court.
This signing marks the first cross-sector cooperation of its kind in Indonesia addressing child and women protection issues.
“Today I am deeply moved because South Sumatra has become the first province to hold such a noble agreement. The purpose is very meaningful. If we look in the field, especially at traffic lights, both in cities and villages, we see many children of divorced parents whose fate is often more tragic than those who have lost a parent to death,” said Governor Deru.
He underlined the importance of the local government’s role in promotive and preventive efforts, including disseminating this program down to the village level through regents and mayors as the frontline of governance. This, he said, will help ensure that divorced women are aware of their rights and how to claim them.
“More than 50 percent of divorce cases are caused by economic problems. The most affected are children and ex-wives, whose rights are often not fulfilled. That is why we must prevent early marriage so such divorce cases do not continue to occur,” Deru explained.
Through this collaboration, Deru hopes that local governments can act as a bridge between communities and religious courts to accelerate the fulfillment of post-divorce rights, particularly for women and children.
“I hope that after this agreement, socialization to the community can begin immediately,” he concluded. (mhn/ril)
Comment