By: Astrid Gonzaga Dionisio, Child Protection Specialist
Yogyakarta, June 2014 - When I attended a discussion on child
protection in Yogyakarta recently, one of the participants really stood out.
Ibu Prihatin is a mother of three and a graduate of
junior high school from Kulon Progo District. She understands very well what is
needed to provide her children with all the support they need to succeed in
school – and she loves to talk about it.
“We have to make sure they have
breakfast in the morning and that their uniforms are clean and in order,” she said
when participants were asked to discuss how to prevent neglect.
Ibu Prihatin has been participating in
the Family Hope Programme (PKH - Program Keluarga Harapan) since 2008. Through the programme, the Indonesian government
provides conditional cash transfers to the poorest families to improve their
access to health and education services.
One of the conditions is that family
members attend these kind of family development sessions to better understand
the impact of child neglect and how to prevent it. They also learn about the risks of
exploitation, be it for labour or even worse for prostitution.
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| Ibu Prihatin read out result from group discussion on what needs to be done to prevent child neglect. © UNICEF Indonesia/2014/Astrid Dionisio |
Children have a right to basic
necessities like food, clothing, shelter and education. And they have a right
to be protected from all forms of exploitation and abuse. However, parents are
often not aware of the risks and the impact of neglect and exploitation.
Ibu Prihatin said this was the first
time she had heard such subjects discussed.
“The topics are interesting,” she said. “I
have learned many things that will help me bring up and nurture my children better,
so they can succeed in their education and are prepared for their later life.”
She hopes the family development
sessions will help prevent child neglect and exploitation in the community and
she wants to support her three children to attain higher education.
Apart from the child protection modules,
beneficiaries of the PKH programme must also attend sessions that focus on
education, health and nutrition as well as economic empowerment.
UNICEF has helped to develop these
sessions. The discussion I attended, on child protection, was a field test to
see how much the participants learned about the subject.
In future, family development sessions will
be run by the PKH facilitators.
One of them is Sapti Puji Rahayu who was
recruited in 2008 for Kulon Progo district, covering 180 beneficiary households.
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| Sapti Puji Rahayu, PKH Facilitator in Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta. © UNICEF Indonesia/2014/Astrid Dionisio |
Sapti ran the fielding testing session that
I attended.
She said discussing all topics on
violence, exploitation and neglect were relevant and important for protecting
children.
“I have found such cases in our community,
and children are suffering,” she said. “It is important that parents are aware
of the risks and the consequences.”
Sapti says she found some children in
the community who were working instead of going to school. Others dropped out
of classes because their parents weren’t making sure they attended.
Sapti has enjoyed working with
vulnerable members of the community. “My most memorable experience was my
success in helping a family to obtain their civil registration documents
including birth registration for their children so they could access education
and other services.”
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| Sapti Puji Rahayu (standing) facilitates the discussions with PKH beneficiaries. © UNICEF Indonesia/2014/Astrid Dionisio |
After seeing the family development
session in action, I feel optimistic. The group was open to talking about sensitive
issues like child exploitation and neglect. Changing this will take time, but
the sessions definitely make a difference and I am proud that we at UNICEF can
help make them as effective as possible.
We need more Saptis who are willing to
listen, work and stay in the community to create change for the most vulnerable
groups, especially children.
