Many Cases Of Harassment, Commission III Of The DPR Asks Victims Not To Be Ashamed In Reporting, Police Must Respond Quickly

Illustration of the DPR Building of the MPR Senayan Jakarta. (Between)

JAKARTA - Member of Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Gilang Dhielafararez, highlighted the recent rise of cases of sexual violence, including allegations of harassment by an obstetrician in Garut, West Java. He also appealed to every victim of sexual violence to report and encourage the police to respond quickly.

Gilang said that the incident of obscenity in health services really hurt people's sense of security. According to him, the harassment case that again involves doctors is not just a criminal case, but this incident is also proof of the weakness of the protection system for the community.

A place that should provide health services, instead becomes a place of uncomfortable treatment for patients. How can people feel prosperous if they do not feel safe in a place that should provide healing," said Gilang Dhielafararez, Thursday, April 17.

"And we hope that the investigation of this case can run professionally and transparently. If the person concerned is proven guilty, he must be given appropriate criminal sanctions," he continued.

Gilang emphasized that the state must be present in a firm manner in ensuring that public spaces are free from violence. Especially for women and children as the group most often victims of sexual violence.

"When people who come for treatment become victims of harassment, it is a betrayal of the mandate of public service. The government must introspect, how can the perpetrators practice for so long without any supervision or complaints being followed up?" said Gilang.

The member of the commission in charge of the law also highlighted the need for an evaluation of the supervisory system and sanctions against medical personnel who violate ethics and law. Gilang encouraged the Ministry of Health to immediately establish a quick and responsive complaint mechanism so that people are not afraid to report.

"I'm afraid this is not a single case. But if the state is not present to provide protection and assistance to victims, more and more perpetrators will be free to roam around, and more people will lose confidence in the system," said the PDIP legislator from the Central Java II electoral district.

Gilang also encouraged all parties not only to criticize, but to make thorough improvements to health service systems that are still prone to misuse by irresponsible persons.

"The state must not be defeated by the perpetrators who injure people's trust. Welfare starts from a sense of security and dignity. That is what we must protect together," said Gilang.

Furthermore, Gilang invites the public to always oversee cases of increasingly sexual violence. According to him, this is necessary so that old cases are not forgotten and can be thoroughly investigated by the authorities.

For example, the case of sexual abuse of minors by the former Ngada Police Chief AKBP Fajar Widyadharma Lukman, then the harassment of a number of students by professors from the UGM Pharmacy Faculty.

Then the rape carried out by the doctor participating in the Specialist Doctors Education Program (PPDS) of Padjadjaran University against the patient's family at Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, to allegations of abuse by obstetricians in Garut and abuse of unscrupulous teachers against dozens of elementary school students in Depok.

There are also many cases of sexual violence in public facilities such as in health facilities and most recently harassment in mass transportation facilities that befell KRL passengers. Gilang stated that there should be no tolerance at all for acts of sexual violence.

"And I invite the public to oversee every case of sexual violence to completion so that it is not forgotten once there is a new case. We must continue to guard together until the victim gets justice," said Gilang.

"Including the case of the former Ngada Police Chief, law enforcers are obliged to continue to update the progress of the case. This applies to all cases of sexual crimes," added the member of the DPR BKSAP.

Gilang also encouraged victims of sexual violence to immediately report the incident to law enforcement officials.

"If someone is a victim of harassment, don't be ashamed and afraid to report. Komnas women must also be able to facilitate the victims, because most victims are embarrassed to report what they have experienced," he said.

"If necessary, the police pick up the ball. The police must also respond quickly to complaints from victims of harassment, don't be careless, let alone normalize sexual violence and instead blame or corner the victim. Because this is what often happens and makes victims of sexual violence reluctant to report," continued Gilang.

In line with that, Gilang highlighted that the implementation of Law No. 12 of 2022 concerning the Crime of Sexual Violence (UU TPKS) is still not optimal. This is because not all derivative rules of the TPKS Law have been issued by the Government.

"In fact, in the mandate of the law, the derivative rules of the TPKS Law must be issued all two years after the Law is enacted, which means that all derivative rules of the TPKS Law must have a maximum of 2024 so that it can be implemented effectively," said Gilang.

To note, until now only 4 of the 7 implementing regulations from the TPKS Law have been stipulated by the government. There are still 3 rules that have not been ratified, namely the Draft Government Regulation (RPP) of the TPKS Victim Assistance Fund; RPP Prevention, Handling, Protection, and Recovery of the Crime of Sexual Violence (RPP 4PTPKS); and the Draft Presidential Decree (RPerpres) of the National Policy for the Eradication of TPKS.

According to Gilang, the issuance of all derivative regulations has become an obstacle in the implementation of the TPKS Law in the field.

"Degenital regulations are very important because they are technical guidelines in the implementation of the law, including the TPKS Law. We hope that the government will immediately complete the preparation of the derivative rules of the TPKS Law that have not been issued," he said.

Gilang also supports the Regional Technical Implementation Unit (UPTD) in each region to provide assistance to victims of sexual violence. This unit can be formed if there are technical rules.

"That way there is a special unit to provide assistance for victims of sexual violence in each region. We ask the government to immediately complete these technical rules," concluded Gilang.