Minister Bintang's Response To The Case Of 6 Islamic Boarding School Students In Banyuwangi Become Victims Of Sexual Harassment

Illustration of students from the Darussalam Islamic boarding school in Blokagung, Banyuwangi, East Java, returning from vacation in April 2022. (Antara-Fikri Y)

JAKARTA - PPPA Minister Bintang Puspayoga spoke about the case of sexual violence against six students at a boarding school in Banyuwangi, East Java.

Bintang emphasized that the repeated cases of sexual violence in Islamic boarding schools should be an alarm for the local government, managers and owners of Islamic boarding schools, the community and parents to carry out strict supervision.

"There should no longer be educators who make children physically and mentally injured because they are treated with violence. All educational institutions are responsible for providing protection for their students, fulfilling children's rights to have a safe and comfortable learning process," said Minister Bintang through a press release here. Jakarta, Tuesday, responded to the case of sexual violence against six students at a boarding school in Banyuwangi.

Furthermore, he said, especially in Islamic boarding schools, there has been a Child Friendly Islamic Boarding School program to create a boarding school environment that is fun for children, educates them to worship, enjoy learning and be creative, and at the same time provide care for the children who live there.

Educational institutions aim to create quality students, both physically and mentally, spiritually to become a superior generation for the future of the nation.

His party deeply regrets the occurrence of cases of sexual violence against six students allegedly committed by F, a caretaker of a boarding school in Singojuruh District, Banyuwangi Regency.

The PPPA Ministry encourages law enforcement officers to thoroughly investigate this case by immediately arresting the perpetrators and imposing maximum criminal sanctions.

Bintang hopes that there will be no negative stigma from the community towards the victims and that victims are given support regarding their trauma recovery so that they can immediately return to the community, hang out with their friends and go to school.

The case of sexual violence against six students was revealed after one of the parents reported the boarding school caregiver to the Banyuwangi Police.

From the statements of the witnesses and the results of the post-mortem evidence, it was revealed that of the six victims, five of them were victims of sexual abuse and one was a woman who was a victim of sexual intercourse.

The five sexual abuse victims were four women and one man. This case has entered the investigation stage but reported F has not been named a suspect.

The police will still summon the reported party on Tuesday 28 June

"The PPPA Ministry encourages law enforcement officers to give punishment to perpetrators based on the applicable law. Law enforcement is very necessary in order to create a deterrent effect for perpetrators and anyone so that similar cases do not recur," said Deputy for Child Special Protection at the PPPA Ministry Nahar.