Jakarta, The Indonesia Post – Vice President Ma’ruf Amin said that children are the nation’s most valuable asset whose rights must be guaranteed to grow and develop and be free from violence and discrimination.
“The implementation of child protection must receive mutual attention. Children are the nation’s most valuable asset,” stressed the Vice President in his remarks online at the 2023 Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) Award in Jakarta, Thursday.
The Vice President said that in Indonesia the Child Protection Law is a form of presence and guarantee of the state for children’s human rights to live, grow and develop and be free from violence and discrimination.
However, said the Vice President, currently there are still problems that must be resolved, especially related to complaint data that need to be addressed immediately. According to him, it is very concerning if the family environment and alternative care have the highest complaint rates.
“Therefore, we must ensure that families and alternative care provide a safe and comfortable environment for the growth and development of children. Likewise with the world of education and schools should be a place that supports the academic learning process as well as the social development of children’s character and talents,” he explained.
The Vice President stressed another thing that deserves joint attention, namely the results of research by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (Unicef) in 2020 which reported an index of child development worldwide, where Indonesia was ranked 17th out of 180. country, and lags behind Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand.
He conveyed that the index measures the health and welfare of children in various indicators, such as child growth, survival, school years, prevalence of violence, growth and child nutrition.
“This means that the family, as a miniature of society and nation, in child care is not what we expect. This backwardness must be pursued through strengthening commitment to synergy and collaboration of all elements of the nation, especially to ensure the fulfillment of the rights and protection of Indonesian children,” he said.
The Vice President also asked KPAI to strengthen its role in various child protection efforts such as handling stunting, sexual harassment, violence and early marriage, including legal advocacy and victim recovery.
In addition, KPAI was asked to increase public awareness regarding children’s rights and optimize various digital channels to intensify public campaigns, including preventing cyberbullying.
Then the Vice President also asked KPAI to encourage the involvement and role of parents, including in reporting cases and protecting children from sexual harassment, violence or discrimination.
The Vice President hopes that the 2023 KPAI Award activities can evaluate and measure the progress of child protection in Indonesia as well as inspire and invite all elements of the nation to be more active and concerned about child protection efforts. (mhn/bbs)
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