National Children's Day 2022: Violence Against Children Still Often Occurs In Riau Islands Province

Hundreds of children take part in the national child immunization month program in Tanjungpinang, Riau Islands (Kepri) in 2022. (Antara/Ogen)

JAKARTA - Riau Islands Province Child Observer (Kepri) Erry Syahrial said cases of violence against children are still a homework for local governments and related policy makers.

He said that the most prominent cases of child abuse in Riau Islands Province today are sexual or child molestation issues. Moreover, recently, quite a number of cases of child abuse have occurred, especially in Batam City.

"Most recently, the owner of the tahfidz Al-Quran boarding school in Batam was suspected of molesting female students," said Erry Syahrial to Antara in Tanjungpinang, Saturday.

According to him, most cases of sexual abuse against children are carried out by adults due to deviant sexual disorders.

In addition, it is also triggered by the lack of parental supervision of children in accessing social media, so that it also triggers children to be vulnerable to being seduced by adults with an orientation to sexual harassment.

"The term is grooming, which is a mode of abuse carried out on children through social media, for example by sending indecent pictures," he said.

The former Commissioner of the Riau Islands Province KPPAD also mentioned several other cases of child abuse that were dominant in the area, such as physical violence, exploitation, bullying, children with legal problems, to child care patterns due to parental divorce and child custody struggles.

"This means that cases of child abuse are still quite high in the Riau Islands Province," he said.

Therefore, he encouraged the commemoration of National Children's Day (HAN) 2022 to be a momentum to increase protection for children for the progress of the Indonesian state, because children are a valuable asset of this nation going forward.

"Children must have their rights fulfilled and protected from all forms of violence from the age of 0-18 years," he said.

He also invited the government, relevant stakeholders, the community, and parents to participate in monitoring the growth and development of children so that they become a happy, smart and healthy golden generation.

Then, support the government and law enforcement officers in guarding cases of child victims of violence in order to get a sense of justice.

On the other hand, Erry appreciated the Riau Islands Province award as a child-friendly province in 2022, but this achievement must of course be accompanied by a commitment to creating child-friendly spaces.

"If our children experience a lot of violence today, how will the existence of this country in the future. The progress of the Indonesian nation really depends on the quality of today's children," he emphasized.