During 2020, Yogyakarta Recorded 29 Applications For Dispensation Of Child Marriage

Head of the Office for Women's Empowerment and Child Protection, Population Control and Family Planning for the City of Yogyakarta Edy Muhammad (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - The Office of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection, Population Control and Family Planning for the City of Yogyakarta noted that there were 29 applications for dispensation of child marriage throughout 2020 or almost the same as the number of dispensations in the previous year.

"The number is almost the same as the previous year, although there are differences in the application for the amount of dispensation for girls and boys," said the Head of the Office of Women Empowerment and Child Protection, Population Control and Family Planning for Yogyakarta City, Edy Muhammad, as reported by Antara, Saturday.

In 2019, the dispensation application for girls aged 16 and under totaled nine children and in 2020 increased to 13 children.

Meanwhile, the application for marriage dispensation for boys aged less than 19 years in 2019 recorded 23 children and in 2020 it decreased to 16 children.

The registration is adjusted to the rules in Law Number 1 of 1974 concerning Marriage, namely a minimum of 16 years for women and a minimum of 19 years for men.

"Of course, these figures should still be part of our evaluation. Most of the causes of child marriage are still unwanted pregnancy factors," he said.

If it is related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Edy said that this factor is not the only cause of child marriage, especially in the aspect of sexual violence.

"The number of reports of domestic violence has indeed increased from 139 to 145 cases. However, there has been a shift in the causal factors from violence to violence in character, economy and other factors such as other ideal men or other ideal women," he said.

In addition to dispensation, if the child marriage still has to be held, it is necessary to have the opinion of a psychologist or counselor from the puskesmas or through the UPT Integrated Service Center for the Protection of Women and Children and the community can also report if they know of child marriage.

The Yogyakarta City Government already has Yogyakarta Mayor Regulation Number 7 of 2019 concerning Prevention of Child Marriage as an effort to provide protection and fulfillment of children's rights.

According to Edy, all parties have an obligation to prevent child marriage in accordance with their respective authorities and responsibilities.

He also hopes that school-age children also carry out their main obligation, namely learning so that child marriage can be suppressed.

Apart from providing protection and fulfillment of children's rights, the rules for preventing child marriage are also aimed at improving welfare, preventing violence against children and the potential for child trafficking, preventing children from dropping out of school and reducing maternal and infant mortality rates.

Whereas in Yogyakarta, based on data from the Religious Court, the number of dispensation decisions on marriage in 2019 were 583 and increased to 959 in 2020.