A note from an activist-researcher.
Irwanto, Ph.D.
Professor, Faculty of Psychology - Atma Jaya Catholic University
Co-director, Center on Child Protection - Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, University of Indonesia
Indonesia has made significant progress to implement the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in the past two decades but serious challenges remain. To understand what has been achieved and the remaining and emerging challenges, let us walk through the CRC’s history in Indonesia.
The UNCRC was ratified by the Republic of Indonesia on 5 September
1990. The ratification, however, was performed in an ad hoc and pragmatic manner to avoid difficult political hurdles in
the House of Parliament Although unusual, the decision to ratify the Convention
by a Presidential Decree (number 36, 1990) was accepted by the United Nations
(UN)
Moreover, the ratification was performed under the condition
that the CRC and its principles were consistent with the Constitution of the Republic
of Indonesia from 1945 which meant ratification with a number of reservations.
These reservations were subsequently withdrawn in 2005.
