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Showing posts with label Children. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Children. Show all posts

Calls to stop mistreating autistic children in Indonesia

Posted by Aldie at 7:43 AM | 0 comments

Antara News, Rahmad Nasution, Sat, April 2 2011


"The very basic treatment of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder is sincere care and love. Please give them both sincere care and true love"


Jakarta (ANTARA News) - World Autism Day was commemorated in various cities in Indonesia on Saturday with a common message for better care and treatment of children with the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Hundreds of people, including parents with autistic children and teenagers, jogged and walked together in cities like the national capital city Jakarta, Medan (North Sumatra) and Magelang (Central Java).

What they expected from the commemoration was that misunderstanding and misleading perception of children with the ASD in Indonesia put to an end.

Acting North Sumatra Governor Gatot Pujo Nugroho, who joined the commemoration of World Autism Day in Medan, underlined the importance of good care for those with autism as their best remedy.

"The very basic treatment of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder is sincere care and love. Please give them both sincere care and true love," Nugroho said.

The children with ASD in Indonesia are still not understood enough and even bullied by their peers and adult people in their neighborhood and, much worse than that, also by those running regular schools.

Despite the fact that autism has nothing to do with a disease, the children with ASD are frequently regarded as "insane" people by certain people in the society due to their ignorance and poor knowledge about them.

Irma, whose kid named Dava is autistic, urged the people-at large to change their mindset about children with ASD. Instead, they need to have a deeper empathy and care for the "special children", she said.

A day before World Autism Day, Irma and some other parents with autistic children gathered at a luxurious restaurant in Central Jakarta along with Indonesia`s outstanding actress and film producer, Christine Hakim, for launching a documentary film on children with ASD entitled "Love Me As I Am".

Those attending the launching of this 45-minute-long film were the parents of 12-year-old Emilio, whose paintings were highly praised by collectors, and Michael Anthony, a pianist.

Christine Hakim said the docudrama featuring the real life and great potentials of the children and teenagers with ASD in greater Jakarta was expected to start changing the society members` misunderstanding about them.

"Until this time, the image of children with ASD remains unfairly negative. Due to poor knowledge and misunderstanding, their families also like denying the reality of life. This docudrama is expected to change the people`s assumption on children with ASD," she said.

This UNESCO goodwill ambassador said autism was not a sort of ailment or mental disorder as psychologists and medical scientists thought. Instead, the children with ASD have extraordinary cognitive potentials.

With their given potentials, those children could bring good things not only for themselves, their families, and their neighborhoods but also for their country if they were treated and educated properly, Christine Hakim said.

"With this documentary film, we hope there will be no more children with ASD who are isolated and regular schools which reject them. Education is the rights of all children," she said.

Sharing Christine Hakim`s views, the film producer, Dr.Ir.Ricky Avenzora, M.Sc.F, said the children with ASD who played in the film were indeed the "hope" of Indonesia because each of them had great cognitive potentials.

"Albert Einstein himself (one of the world`s greatest scientists-ed) is an autistic person," he said, adding that this docudrama would officially be shown to public on a TV station when Indonesians commemorated the national education day on May 2, 2011.

The high prevalence of children with ASD in Indonesia could bring excellent things for the nation if their great cognitive potentials were properly handled, he said.

As part of the efforts to create a proper understanding about and new awareness of children with ASD in the society, Ricky Avenzora said the film would be shown at a number of leading universities in different Indonesian cities.

"Besides showing the film, as part of our roadshows, we also plan to hold seminars and trainings for teachers and parents, and create caring community for those with ASD in such targeted cities as Medan, Padang, Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Makassar," he said.

Through the roadshows, the campus community members in Indonesia were expected to pay more serious attention to academic studies on children with ASD and start building collaborative research activities among themselves, he said.

Gading Pluit Hospital`s Consultant Neurologist Andreas Harry who financially supported this docudrama said the film was a chance to unite a new perception of the children with ASD.

Due to the scientific quality of its content, he said he was optimistic that the film was not only significant for Indonesia but also the world community members.

Changing the public misunderstanding about autistic children and creating a new awareness of the great cognitive potentials of those "special children" is not an easy work.

But, as Christine Hakim believes, with persistence and massive efforts of all stakeholders in Indonesia, the children with ASD in the country can be treated as they should be. They have the rights to be "loved as they are"!.

Editor: Aditia Maruli

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FDA examines link between food dyes, hyperactivity

Posted by Aldie at 1:30 PM | 0 comments

Associated Press, By MARY CLARE JALONICK, Mar 30, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FDA is examining the link between dyes found in everyday foods and hyperactivity in children.

At a two-day meeting starting Wednesday, an FDA advisory committee will decide whether available data links the dyes and the disorder. The panel will recommend Thursday whether the agency should further regulate dyes, do more studies on the issue or require better labeling of the additives. They could also recommend that the FDA do nothing at all.

The FDA has so far said there is no proven relationship between food dyes and hyperactivity in most children. But the agency said that for "certain susceptible children," hyperactivity and other behavioral problems may be exacerbated by food dyes and other substances in food.

Public health advocates agree that dyes do not appear to be the underlying cause of hyperactivity, but say that the effects of dyes on some children is cause enough to ban the additives. The FDA is holding the meeting in response to a 2008 petition filed by the advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest to ban Yellow 5, Red 40 and six other dyes.

Michael Jacobson, the director of that group, said at the meeting Wednesday that the only reason that dyes exist in food is to trick consumers. Some manufacturers use less dyes in the same foods sold in Europe because of concerns there over hyperactivity.

"Dyes are often used to make junk food more attractive to young children, or to simulate the presence of a healthful fruit or other natural ingredient," Jacobson said. "Dyes would not be missed in the food supply except by the dye manufacturers."

Jacobson conceded that completely banning the dyes would be difficult, urging the FDA to at least put warnings on food package labels.

Scientists and public advocates have debated the issue for more than 30 years as the use of dyes in food has steadily risen. The advisory panel is sifting through a variety of studies over the two-day meeting, some showing more of a relationship between dyes and hyperactivity than others.

The food industry is warning consumers not to rush to judgment. David Schmidt, president and CEO of International Food Information Council Foundation, a food-industry funded group, said dyes help consumers enjoy their food by maintaining or improving appearance.

Suggesting a link between the color additives and attention deficit disorder in children "could have unintended consequences, including unnecessarily frightening consumers about safe ingredients that are consumed every day," he said.


Related Article:

Ban caramel colouring in soft drinks, group urges

An image illustrating the ingredients in a soft drink
is shown on the Center for Science in the Public
Interest (CSPI) website. (Jorge Bach / CSPI)


PepsiCo cuts sugary drinks from schools worldwide


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US Man Threatens to Kill Himself, Daughters

Posted by Aldie at 2:24 AM | 0 comments

Jakarta Globe, Made Arya Kencana, March 03, 2011

An American man in Bali has threatened to kill himself and his four children if he is forced to the leave the country without them.

American Eli Gattineo, 50, and his four children in their
Bali villa. Eli threatens to commit suicide with his children if
the government deports him or does not allow him to leave
the country with them. (Photo Source: SCTV)
Eli Gattenio, 50, lives with his four daughters, aged three to 11, in a villa in Seminyak following his divorce from an Indonesian woman, Sari Soraya Ruka, in May 2010.

After the divorce, Gattenio faces deportation, but he is unable to take his children to the United States with him.

In protest, the father has locked himself and his four daughters — Indigo, 11, Hope and Joy, both 9, and Nadia, 3 — inside the villa since Wednesday. All the doors and windows have been bolted shut.

Gattenio on Thursday threatened to kill himself and his daughter by lighting a gas canister to cause an explosion.

He said he had been taking care of his daughters on his own.

“My former wife took my passport and my children’s passports. I don’t know where she is now, she could be in Bali or Bekasi. She also took everything I had and put her name on it, I have nothing left but my children,” Gattenio said on Thursday.

He said he had sought help from various institutions to allow him to the leave the country with his children.

“I have filed a report to the police, the US Consulate, the Bali Immigration Office and spoken to local and foreign journalists,” Gattenio said.

“I have sent a letter to the presidents [President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and US President Barack Obama] two months ago but there has been no follow up. I am waiting for responses from the presidents or they must allow us [he and his children] to die together,” he said.

Gattenio recently tried to kill himself by jumping from the rooftop of the villa, but security officers managed to persuade him otherwise.

Kuta Police were not available for comment.


Related Article:

US Man Maintains Suicide, Murder Threat


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Indonesian Police Say Alleged Gang Rape of Teen 'Unforgivable'

Posted by Aldie at 2:05 AM | 0 comments

Jakarta Globe, March 03, 2011

Related articles

Indonesian police said on Thursday that four officers would be charged over the “unforgivable” gang rape of a 15-year-old girl in Papua province.

The officers, along with three civilians, allegedly took turns raping the girl in a house in Biak city in February, Papua provincial spokesman Wachyono told AFP.

“We have completed our investigations. Some of the suspects confessed to the rape, some didn’t,” he said.

“But we have spoken to witnesses and collected enough evidence to show they were guilty of rape and we’ll be taking the case to court.”

Local media reported that the men locked the teenager in a room and raped her repeatedly over a period of days. She was beaten if she resisted and lost consciousness as a result of the abuse.

“The officers committed a grave wrongdoing, a violation that is unforgivable and uncondonable and deserving of severe punishment. They have sullied the good name of the national police,” Wachyono said.

Police are also investigating the alleged rape of a Papuan women who was forced to give oral sex to officers while she was being held in custody in the Papuan provincial capital of Jayapura.

Three police officers are suspected of raping the married woman on multiple occasions between November and January, while she was being held for alleged gambling.

Local media reported that she had tried to kill herself during the ordeal.

“The victim’s family have lodged a police report so we’re starting criminal charges against the officers,” Wachyono said, adding that the suspects were being “made to stand in the sun” as punishment.

“At the moment, the officers are receiving disciplinary sanction. They are being detained for 21 days, made to stand in the sun and have had their promotions delayed,” he said.

Jayapura city police chief Imam Setiawan resigned on Tuesday over the case, a rare move by a senior officer in a police force that is notorious for corruption and torture of detainees.

Indonesian security forces are frequently accused of rights violations in Papua, which has seen a low-level insurgency by poorly-armed rebels since its incorporation into Indonesia in the 1960s.

Human rights activists and the United Nations say Indonesian police regularly torture and beat suspects in custody, while extortion is rife throughout the country’s prisons.

Agence France-Presse

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Provinces required to establish women, children`s empowerment centers

Posted by Aldie at 5:00 AM | 0 comments

Antara News, Wed, February 23 2011

Padang, West Sumatra (ANTARA News) - State Minister for Women`s Empowerment Linda Amalia Sari Gumelar has asked all provinces and districts to establish an Integrated Service for Women and Children Empowerment (P2TP2A).

"All provinces and districts in Indonesia should establish P2TP2A," Linda Amalia Sari Gumelar said in a function to open Women Organization Coordinating Board Regional Meeting here on Wednesday.

Linda explained from 2002 - 2007 the State Minister for Women`s Empowerment and Child Protection had facilitated the establishment of 17 P2TP2A in 17 provinces and 80 districts/municipalities.

"Unfortunately not all centers function as expected, and therefore the Women`s Empowerment Ministry will cooperate with regional governments to organize training and capacity building," Linda said.

According to her, things like that should be a concern of all parties because the evaluation results of P2TP2A implementation indicated that limited human resources and infrastructure had become obstacles so far.

"Therefore we ask for cooperation of local governments to create a network strengthening programs," Lind said.

She explained that P2TP2A was a community-based container service to women`s empowerment and child protection.

Linda said P2TP2A had a role in a bid to fulfill the need for improvement in education, health, economy, and for the management of violent acts against women and children.

Editor: Priyambodo

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Pediatrics report details risks from energy drinks

Posted by Aldie at 6:57 AM | 0 comments

AP, LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer

FILE-In this Feb. 17, 2010 file photo, Dakota Sailor, who suffered a siezure after consuming several Nos energy drinks, poses for a photograph in Carl Junction, Mo. Energy drinks are under-studied, overused and can be dangerous for children and teens, warns a report by doctors who say kids shouldn’t use the popular products. (AP Photo/The Joplin Globe, Roger Nomer, File)

CHICAGO (AP) — Energy drinks are under-studied, overused and can be dangerous for children and teens, warns a report by doctors who say kids shouldn't use the popular products.

The potential harms, caused mostly by too much caffeine or similar ingredients, include heart palpitations, seizures, strokes and even sudden death, the authors write in the medical journal Pediatrics. They reviewed data from the government and interest groups, scientific literature, case reports and articles in popular and trade media.

Dakota Sailor, 18, a high school senior in Carl Junction, Mo., says risks linked with energy drinks aren't just hype.

Sailor had a seizure and was hospitalized for five days last year after drinking two large energy drinks — a brand he'd never tried before. He said his doctor thinks caffeine or caffeine-like ingredients may have been to blame.

The report says some cans have four to five times more caffeine than soda, and Sailor said some kids he knows "drink four or five of them a day. That's just dumb."

Sailor has sworn off the drinks and thinks other kids should, too.

The report's authors want pediatricians to routinely ask patients and their parents about energy drink use and to advise against drinking them.

"We would discourage the routine use" by children and teens, said Dr. Steven Lipshultz, pediatrics chairman at the University of Miami's medical school. He wrote the report with colleagues from that center.

The report says energy drinks often contain ingredients that can enhance the jittery effects of caffeine or that can have other side effects including nausea and diarrhea. It says they should be regulated as stringently as tobacco, alcohol and prescription medicines.

"For most children, adolescents, and young adults, safe levels of consumption have not been established," the report said.

Introduced more than 20 years ago, energy drinks are the fastest growing U.S. beverage market; 2011 sales are expected to top $9 billion, the report said. It cites research suggesting that about one-third of teens and young adults regularly consume energy drinks. Yet research is lacking on risk from long-term use and effects in kids — especially those with medical conditions that may increase the dangers, the report said.

The report comes amid a crackdown on energy drinks containing alcohol and caffeine, including recent Food and Drug Administration warning letters to manufacturers and bans in several states because of alcohol overdoses.

The report focuses on nonalcoholic drinks but emphasizes that drinking them along with alcohol is dangerous.

The American Association of Poison Control Centers adopted codes late last year to start tracking energy drink overdoses and side effects nationwide; 677 cases occurred from October through December; so far, 331 have been reported this year.

Most 2011 cases involved children and teens. Of the more than 300 energy drink poisonings this year, a quarter of them involved kids younger than 6, according to a data chart from the poison control group.

That's a tiny fraction of the more than 2 million poisonings from other substances reported to the group each year. But the chart's list of reported energy drink-related symptoms is lengthy, including seizures, hallucinations, rapid heart rate, chest pain, high blood pressure and irritability, but no deaths.

Monday's paper doesn't quantify drink-related complications or deaths. It cites other reports on a few deaths in Europe of teens or young adults who mixed the drinks with alcohol, or who had conditions like epilepsy that may have increased the risks.

Maureen Storey, senior vice president of science policy at the American Beverage Association, an industry group, said the report "does nothing more than perpetuate misinformation" about energy drinks.

Many of the drinks contain much less caffeine than coffee from popular coffeehouses, and caffeine amounts are listed on many of the products, she said in a written statement.

Caffeine is safe, but those who are sensitive to it can check the labels, she said.

A clinical report on energy drinks is expected soon from the American Academy of Pediatrics that may include guidelines for doctors.

Dr. Marcie Schneider, an adolescent medicine specialist in Greenwich, Conn., and member of the academy's nutrition committee, praised Monday's report for raising awareness about the risks.

"These drinks have no benefit, no place in the diet of kids," Schneider said.

___
Online:
American Academy of Pediatrics: http://www.aap.org
American Association of Poison Control Centers: http://www./aapcc.org
American Beverage Association: http://www.ameribev.org
___
Online:
http://www.aap.org
http://www./aapcc.org
http://www.ameribev.org

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Research: 18,000 smokers in S. Kalimantan are 5-9 years old

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The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 01/25/2011

A South Kalimantan Health Agency survey has revealed that around 18,000 children aged between 5 to 9 years old are active smokers, as quoted by Antara state news agency.

The shocking data was revealed by the head of the South Kalimantan Health Agency, Rosihan Adhani, on Tuesday, while drafting a Regional Regulation (Perda) on the establishment of smoke-free zones (KTR) in Banjarmasin.

KTRs will be established around places of worship, healthcare facilities, schools, playgrounds, workplaces and public transportation facilities.

According to Rosihan, the amount of juvenile smokers in the South Kalimantan province significantly increases every year. Approximately 30.5 percent of South Kalimantan’s population are smokers –close to the national rate of 34.7 percent.

The research reveals that 30.5 percent of the 3.6 million people living in South Kalimantan are smokers. Approximately 41.3 percent of the smokers are between 15 and 19 years of age. Those aged between 10 and 14 years old accounts for 17.5 percent of the total, and about 18.000 – or 1.7 percent – are within the age group of 5-9 years old.

The KTRs are intended to prevent non-smokers and young adults from being exposed to cigarette smoke, as passive smokers not only face health risks associated with second-hand smoke but it also sets a negative example for children and young adults who might end up smoking “out of curiosity”.

“Our main goals are to reduce tobacco-related diseases and/or deaths and to increase the air quality in South Kalimantan,” Rosihan said. “But we also hope the KTRs could reduce the prevalence of juvenile smoking, and hopefully increase workplace efficiency, as non-smokers are generally healthier and do not take ‘smoking breaks’ as smokers do.”

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Suspect admits to kidnapping, molesting and selling 96 children

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The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 01/12/2011

Following the arrest of Sartono, 33, on suspicion of kidnapping, molesting and trafficking children in the Thousand Islands regency, the suspect admitted to shocked investigators that he had committed acts against at least 96 children.

Thousand Islands Police detective chief Adj. Comr. Reynold EP Hutagalung said Sartono told police investigators that his pedophilic behavior spanned 17 years.

“He remembers the names of 16 children so far,” Reynold said as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

In the last two years alone, Sartono allegedly molested 54 children.

Sartono said that he had kidnapped, molested and sold 42 children prior to 2008.

“Most of them were street children between 14-years-old and 17-years-old who lived in the vicinities of Purwakarta railway station, Cikampek railway station and Kampung Bandan railway station,” Reynold said.

On Tuesday, police investigators took Sartono back to the locations of his admitted pedophilic acts to help him remember the events.

“We brought the suspect to Serang, Banten, to find more evidence of the crimes,” he said.

Police arrested Sartono at a motel in the Harapan islet on Friday, saving Rul, 14, who had been kidnapped by Sartono and was missing since Nov. 25, 2010. Sartono had allegedly sodomized Rul and forced him into prostitution by serving other grown-up men in exchange for money.

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AP EXCLUSIVE: US says too much fluoride in water

Posted by Aldie at 6:31 AM | 0 comments

AP, Jan. 7, 2011 8:49 AM ET

ATLANTA (AP) — Fluoride in drinking water — credited with dramatically cutting cavities and tooth decay — may now be too much of a good thing. It's causing spots on some kids' teeth.

FILE - In this June 3, 2008 file photo, Liberty Valley Elementary
School, Danville, Pa., kindergarten student Tianna Swisher attempts
to drink from the water fountain at Montour Preserve, near
Washingtonville, Pa., during the school's outdoor field trip. Fluoride in
drinking water,credited with dramatically cutting cavities and tooth decay,
may now be too much of a good thing. It's causing spots on some kids'
teeth. A reported increase in the spotting problem is one reason the
federal government will announce Friday, Jan. 7, 2011, it plans to lower
the recommended limit for fluoride in water supplies, the first such
change in nearly 50 years. (AP Photo/Bloomsburg Press Enterprise,
Bill Hughes, File)


A reported increase in the spotting problem is one reason the federal government will announce Friday it plans to lower the recommended limit for fluoride in water supplies — the first such change in nearly 50 years.

About 2 out of 5 adolescents have tooth streaking or spottiness because of too much fluoride, a surprising government study found recently. In some extreme cases, teeth can even be pitted by the mineral — though many cases are so mild only dentists notice it.

Health officials note that most communities have fluoride in their water supplies, and toothpaste has it too. Some kids are even given fluoride supplements.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is announcing a proposal to change the recommended fluoride level to 0.7 milligrams per liter of water. And the Environmental Protection Agency will review whether the maximum cutoff of 4 milligrams per liter is too high.

The standard since 1962 has been a range of 0.7 to 1.2 milligrams per liter.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the splotchy tooth condition, fluorosis, is unexpectedly common in kids ages 12 through 15. And it appears to have grown much more common since the 1980s.

"One of the things that we're most concerned about is exactly that," said an administration official who was not authorized to speak publicly before the release of the report. The official described the government's plans in an interview with The Associated Press.

The government also is expected to release two related EPA studies which look at the ways Americans are exposed to fluoride and the potential health effects. This shift away from government's long-standing praise of the benefits of fluoride is sure to re-energize groups that still oppose it.

Fluoride is a mineral that exists naturally in water and soil. Scientists in the early 1940s discovered that people who lived where water supplies naturally had more fluoride also had fewer cavities. Some locales have naturally occurring fluoridation levels above 1.2.

Today, most public drinking water supplies are fluoridated, especially in larger cities. Counting everyone, including those who live in rural areas, about 64 percent of Americans drink fluoridated water.

Fluoridation has been fought for decades by people who worried about its effects, including conspiracy theorists who feared it was a plot to make people submissive to government power.

Maryland is the most fluoridated state, with nearly every resident on a fluoridated water system. In contrast, only about 11 percent of Hawaii residents are on fluoridated water, according to government statistics.

Drinking water patterns have changed over the years, so that some stark regional differences in fluoride consumption are leveling out. There was initially a range in recommended levels because people in hotter climates drank more water. But with air conditioning and sodas, Americans in the South and Southwest don't necessarily consume more water than those in colder states, said one senior administration official.

Fluorosis is considered the main downside related to fluoridation.

According to the CDC, nearly 23 percent of children ages 12-15 had fluorosis in a study done in 1986 and 1987. That rose to 41 percent in the more recent study, which covered the years 1999 through 2004.

"We're not necessarily surprised to see this slow rise in mild fluorosis," Dr. William Kohn, director of the CDC's division of oral health, said in a recent interview.

Health officials have hesitated to call it a problem, however. In most kids, it's barely noticeable; even dentists have trouble seeing it, and sometimes don't bother to tell their unknowing patients. Except in the most severe cases, health officials considered the discoloring of fluorosis to be a welcome trade-off for the protection fluoride provides against cavities.

"One of water fluoridation's biggest advantages is that it benefits all residents of a community — at home, work, school, or play. And fluoridation's effectiveness in preventing tooth decay is not limited to children, but extends throughout life, resulting in improved oral health," said HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Howard Koh, in a statement.

Indeed, many health leaders continue to be worried about cavities, particularly among poor families with kids who eat a lot of sweets but don't get much dental care. The American Public Health Association in November adopted a resolution calling for coordinated programs to be established at public health, dental and medical clinics to offer fluoride varnish — a highly concentrated lacquer painted on teeth to prevent cavities.

Secretary Kathleen Sebelius could make a final decision within a few months, the administration official said.
___
Online: CDC on fluoridation: http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/


Related Article:

Fluoride means lower IQs and more mental retardation

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Over Half of Child Prisoners Are in Adult Jails, Officials Admit

Posted by Aldie at 1:17 AM | 0 comments

Jakarta Globe, Made Arya Kencana | December 23, 2010


Denpasar. Fifty-seven percent of the more than 6,000 children incarcerated across the country are locked up alongside adult offenders rather than in juvenile detention centers, according to child welfare officials.

Teenagers locked up in a youth prison in Tangerang. Child welfare
advocates say law enforcement should be focused on rehabilitating
young offenders. JG Photo/YC Kurniantoro
Sutarti Sudewo , deputy minister for women’s empowerment and child protection, said the problem came down to a simple lack of space. She said Indonesia had 16 juvenile detention centers, which were only able to hold 2,357 of the country’s 6,273 registered young offenders.

Of the remainder, 3,576 are locked up in adult penitentiaries, while the rest are housed at the 15 children’s centers run by the Social Affairs Ministry or welfare homes run by charitable groups.

“To make matters worse, the government only has 34 certified social workers for children,” Sutarti said on Thursday during a seminar in Denpasar on children and the justice system.

The country has seen a significant increase in the number of juvenile detainees this year, from last year’s figure of 5,308. Sutarti said this was a point of concern.

“Everyone needs to be concerned about how and why there’s been this big increase in the number of children being jailed,” she said.

Apong Herlina, from the Indonesian Commission for Child Protection (KPAI), a nongovernmental group, said juvenile offenders should be subjected to restorative or reparative justice rather than criminal prosecution.

Restorative justice treats a crime as an offense against the victim rather than against the state, and allows for a variety of options for the offender to make reparations, including by apologizing, returning stolen items or doing community service.

“Law enforcement agencies from the police up to the judges must begin taking into consideration what is in these children’s best interests,” Apong said.

“Applying restorative justice in the case of juvenile offenders is particularly appropriate because these children need to be given the chance to better themselves in the future.”

She said several state institutions had signed a joint agreement on imposing restorative rather than criminal justice against child offenders, but the idea had not yet caught on with law enforcers in the field.

The institutions backing the idea include the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, the Supreme Court, the Attorney General’s Office, the Justice and Human Rights Ministry, the Social Affairs Ministry and the National Police.

“We’ve advocated on behalf of [many child offenders] and ensured they were all sent to either a juvenile penitentiary or a children’s shelter,” said Nyoman Masni, the KPAI Bali chairwoman.

“We’ve also ensured that these cases don’t disrupt their education and that they can continue their studies.”

Related Article:

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Women Looking for Missing Child Beaten by Aceh Mob

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Jakarta Globe, Nurdin Hasan | December 14, 2010

Banda Aceh. Two women in Aceh are in critical condition after being beaten on Saturday by a mob of villagers who mistook them for kidnappers.

The victims were identified as Yuniarti, 45, a survivor of the 2004 tsunami in Banda Aceh, and her friend, Syafira, 40, a civil servant in Tamiang district.

Authorities said the women had gone to the Gempong Kuala elementary school in Langsa to visit a sixth-grader named Febi Gebriana who looked like Yuniarti’s missing daughter.

The child was last seen six years ago, before the Dec. 26 tsunami, which claimed the lives of over 160,000 people in Indonesia and thousands more in countries around the Indian Ocean. Yuniarti has been looking for her daughter since.

Yosi Muhamartha, chief of the Langsa District Police, said the women’s visit to the school seemed suspicious to the villagers, who were on edge over text messages warning about alleged kidnappings in Aceh.

Yosi said some residents brought Yuniarti and Syafira to the village chief’s office for questioning over why they wanted to visit a particular student.

The women, meanwhile, said they simply wanted to see Febi and had gotten permission from the school’s principal to do so.

A witness said hundreds of villagers soon marched into the office and attacked Yuniari and Syafira, refusing to stop even when police arrived and fired warning shots.

“The residents have been worried because of rumors about abductions,” Yosi said. “The angry mob didn’t care. They beat up the two women until they were in critical condition.”

The same witness said police were able to carry Yuniarti and Syafira away from the mob and into a waiting patrol car. Even then, the witness said, villagers chased after the vehicle.

The victims were rushed to a nearby hospital, but Syafira had to be transferred to a bigger hospital in Medan because she had a collarbone fracture  and wounds all over her body.

Yuniarti also sustained serious injuries and had to undergo intensive medical treatment at Langsa General Hospital.

Yosi said both women had “good intentions” when they visited the school and it was unfortunate that villagers resorted to violence when they confronted the victims.

The police chief said he suspected someone in the village persuaded other residents to attack Yuniarti and Syafira.

Some suspects have been questioned by the police in Langsa, but none have been arrested for the attack, according to Yosi.

Authorities have warned residents in Aceh against vigilantism, saying the text messages about kidnappings in the province were unfounded.

In Aceh’s western coast, however, villagers have formed patrols in their areas and begun conducting checks on passing cars at night, in response to the text-message warnings.

Yosi said police and regional government officials were working together to correct this misinformation.

“The rumor is baseless, started by some irresponsible people to create fear within the society,” he said. “So far, there have been no [recent] kidnapping cases in Langsa.”

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Lack of Sex Education Puts Indonesia Children at Risk: Experts

Posted by Aldie at 2:42 PM | 0 comments

Jakarta Globe, Dessy Sagita & Shari Nijman | December 10, 2010

Jakarta. There are very serious consequences that could result from Indonesian society’s continued reluctance to acknowledge that children need to learn about sex early on at home and in schools, experts warned on Friday.

There are very serious consequences that could result
from Indonesian society’s continued reluctance to
acknowledge that children need to learn about sex early
on at home and in schools, experts warned on Friday.
(Antara Photo)
For instance, Oldri Shearli Mukuan, an activist from the HIV-Positive Indonesian Women’s Association, said that when she had her first period, her mother warned her to be careful but did not explain how or why.

“By the time I was 16, I was a heroin addict and the victim of frequent sexual abuse by my boyfriend, who was also an addict,” she said at an Atma Jaya Catholic University seminar about sexual education for teenagers.

If she had been armed with proper information about sex and drugs and their consequences, she said, she probably would have made better choices.

The problem, according to Irwandi, a psychology professor at Atma Jaya Catholic University, is there is hardly any place children or teenagers can go to receive proper information.

Ideally, he said, schools should be the most trusted and neutral institution where sex is discussed. But most education institutions either shy away from the topic or don’t provide comprehensive information.

In the early 1990s, he said, he tried to include sex education in the schools curriculum, but an official from the Ministry of Health said he could never mention the word “condom” in class.

“He said I would have to go over his dead body before I could mention the word ‘condom’ at school,” he said.

Irwandi acknowledged the Indonesian education system has changed a lot since then, but limitations still exist because schools mostly talk about chastity instead of the real concept of sex.

“Children at most Indonesian schools are overprotected,” he said.

Nia Dinata, a prominent film director and producer who spoke at the seminar, said she had problems teaching her teenage son about sex because his school only provided him information about reproductive organs.

“I once asked my son if he knew what sex was, and he said according to school, sex was gender,” she said, adding that very few schools include comprehensive information about sex in their curriculum.

Dhita Wijaya, 19, a psychology student at Atma Jaya Catholic University, said she learned about sex in her high school but mainly about abortion.

“My school arranged some sex education, but they just pointed out the risks of having an abortion. They make us afraid of having an abortion, but they don’t talk to us about how to prevent it,” she said.

To address the low awareness among Indonesian teenagers of HIV/AIDS — just 14.3 percent, according to a Central Statistics Bureau survey in 2010 — National Education Minister Muhammad Nuh said the ministry intended to begin HIV/AIDS education for school students.

However, he dodged a question about whether the lessons would include condom use.

Irwandi said schools and universities should take more proactive roles in providing honest and open information about sex and reproduction, because other media would not hesitate to bombard children with information about sex, complete with more interesting graphics and audio, without considering the risks it posed.

If not from unfiltered media, children would learn from their peers, who often hardly know any better, he said.

When should children be taught? For psychology major Edward Samuel, 19, it should be sooner rather than later.

“For me, my first sex education was in junior high school, and I think that’s very, very late,” he said.

“It would be better if they started it in kindergarten or elementary school. I think it’s too late if they get it in junior high school.”

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Police arrest two in migrant worker Sumiati torture case

Posted by Aldie at 6:53 AM | 0 comments

Antara News, Thursday, December 9, 2010 21:09 WIB

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian police`s criminal investigation department has arrested two people in connection with the case of Sumiati, the female domestic helper who was seriously mistreated by her employer in Saudi Arabia.

"A team of criminal investigation officers has been probing the Sumiati case and, as a result, arrested JL and MM as suspects on December 4, 2010." Brig Gen Agung Sabar Santono, director of general crimes at the National Police Headquarters, said here Thursday.

JL was the person who had sponsored Sumiati, a resident of Dumpu in East Nusatenggara, as a would-be migrant worker and MM was an employee of manpower recruitment agency PT Rajana Falam Putri who had made the arrangements for Sumiati`s employment in Medina, Saudi Arabia, he said.

"These two people are suspected of a crime, namely sending an underage girl overseas for monetary gain and putting her in a situation where she was physically and otherwise exploited," Agung said.

Apart of having sent a migrant worker abroad in deviation from the existing regulations, both suspects had also illegally changed the victim`s date of birth from August 21, 1992 to January 2, 1987 in order to be able to present her as an adult , he said.

Sumiati eventually was recently hospitalized in Medina for serious injuries inflicted on her by her Saudi employer. She had been rarely given food, sustained serious wounds on the back of her head, a broken nose, a cut off upper lip , skin lesions from a hot iron, cracked ribs, a broken middle finger. In addition, she had never received her promised salary.

Agung said both suspects had violated articles in Law no.21/2007 on human trafficking and in Law no.23/2002 on child protection.

"They both also violated articles in Law no.69/2004 on placement and protection of migrant workers abroad and articles in the Criminal Code," he said.

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