Highlighting The Case Of Children Burning Residents' Houses Because Of Film Inspired, Puan: Digital Content Supervision Must Be Strengthened

JAKARTA - The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Puan Maharani, expressed her deep concern over the burning of 13 houses by a 9-year-old boy because they were inspired by film and game scenes.

Puan assessed that this incident was a clear proof of the bad effects of digital content that was not filtered for children so that supervision needed to be strengthened.

"The state must not allow entertainment content and digital space to become a free field that endangers the morale and future of the younger generation. The state must be present to ensure that digital content does not have a negative impact on the character of Indonesian children," said Puan Maharani, Friday, May 9.

Strict monitoring of entertainment content and digital content, including online games, must be further strengthened. The government is obliged to ensure a safe digital space for children with a number of approaches," he continued.

Puan encourages the government to improve the parental control system on digital platforms, and create a healthy and educational cyber ecosystem for children.

He asked the Government to build an effective surveillance system to prevent children from being exposed to violent content, as well as other negative content.

"Strategic infrastructure is needed, and continuous cooperation from related parties, including the Government's firmness on content providers. This challenge must be answered by the Government so that our children are free from the influence of bad content," said Puan.

According to Puan, the fire incident in Sukabumi should be a warning that delays in building a child protection system in the digital era have the potential to trigger a crisis in the character of the nation's next generation.

"There must be strong regulations, adequate digital literacy, and active involvement of the state, so that children are not exposed to violent content that is not in accordance with the age, moral value and culture of the nation," he said.

Puan also emphasized the importance of national digital space governance in favor of child protection, by involving a multi-sector approach from the government, DPR, the world of education, and digital industry players.

Digital platforms must also have a responsibility to ensure that the content intended for adults cannot be accessed by children. The government must also be present as the main protector of the interests of the nation's children," explained Puan.

Puan also encouraged the government to immediately design a national policy of child protection in a digital space that regulates the standard classification of age and stricter digital content sensors. Puan supports administrative sanctions against platforms that allow violent and destructive content to be accessed by children.

"The incident in Sukabumi is a warning that our generation is facing an invisible threat, namely a character crisis due to consumption of unhealthy digital content," he said.

Puan said children cannot be blamed for behavioral irregularities due to access to violent content they see.

These children follow what they see. Children's attitudes and behavior are the responsibility of adults. How to carry out strict supervision. So this is a shared responsibility, including policy makers," said Puan.

On the other hand, Puan appreciated the decision of the residents and the police who chose the deliberation route to agree that the children's parents would repair the houses of residents who had burned down.

We must prioritize the protection of children. In cases like this, the current homework is to help the child's mental recovery and character to be free from the negative influence of improper digital content," explained the mother of two.

Therefore, Puan asked relevant agencies to provide assistance to children who are experiencing problems due to the negative influence of entertainment and digital content.

'Children who have mental problems and irregularities due to digital content must receive assistance. Central and local governments must provide rehabilitation and psychosocial assistance services for victims of exposure to poor digital content, including for their families," Puan appealed.

Puan asked the government to further strengthen digital literacy in collaboration with various elements related to child protection matters. Then socialization to parents must also be encouraged.

"Maintaining children who are future national leaders is our shared responsibility. And the Government must facilitate through supportive policies, including ensuring that digital spaces are healthy for our children," said Puan.

Puan also ensured that the DPR will continue to support child protection measures through the function of legislation, budget and supervision. He also invites every parent to strictly supervise their children, including supervision of digital content and entertainment.

"Let's take care of our children together. Present digital content and content that is child-friendly because actually technological progress also has a positive impact if used properly," said Puan.

"So it's just a matter of how we take care of our children not to access content that is not for them," concluded Puan.

Terror of the burning of a number of houses in Sukabumi, West Java has gone viral on social media. Ironically, the perpetrators of the terror act turned out to be 9 years old. Although there were no bigger fires, this action made residents restless.

According to residents in Tipar Village, Sukabumi City, the terror act occurred in several consecutive days. In the action, the perpetrator burned garbage outside the residents' houses until the fire grew bigger. The child set fire in the early hours of the morning when residents were not active.

From the results of the examination by the Citamiang Police together with the Sukabumi City Police Satreskrim, a total of 13 houses were burned. Dozens of houses were burned randomly because the child was inspired by a film and game.