Abused children find safety at shelter

Emmy Fitri, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Statistics on the number of abused children in the country do not add up to much in comparison to the life-altering tragedy for the child involved.

A list of recent cases is shocking and sobering. A 15-year-old girl living in Bekasi is left pregnant by her biological father. A three-year-old girl is raped by her own father in North Jakarta. Two young girls are molested by their father in front of their mother in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta.

In Greater Jakarta alone in 2001 at least 51 children, including under-fives, were victims of sexual abuses.

The data provided by Sikap (solidarity on antiviolence against women and children) is merely a warning for all of us that abuse may be happening around us.

"Not a single thing that happens can be simply forgotten by the children. Such violence is too harsh for them and also for the parents, as they can no longer act normally," Sikap coordinator Magdalena Sitorus said.

Her group works with children under 18 years old but these are the victims of abuse that come forward. Many families, with limited knowledge on trauma and treatment of sexual abuse victims, as well as intense feelings of shame, flatly reject the intervention of strangers.

Initially the group set up a hotline but it proved to be inadequate. A home has been converted into a shelter for less fortunate kids, but the address is kept confidential.

In the shelter the children are given medical, spiritual and psychological therapy, provided by several psychologists and doctors. For those who are not staying in the shelter, there is volunteer outreach, said Magdalena.

Funded by the German organization Terre des Hommes, Magdalena said one of her biggest obstacles was the fact that the public mind-set remained patriarchical -- and often blamed the victim for what occurred.

"The media often refer to such crimes merely as a news commodity, and many parties are concerned but don't know how to handle it properly," Magdalena said.

In Surakarta, Central Java, activist Emmy L.S. from the Kakak foundation said parents or relatives often chose to believe that when children started "to smile and play" they were on the road to recovery, not realizing that they harbored deep psychological scars.

The foundation also works with children who are victims of physical abuse and child prostitutes who hang out in malls or transportation terminals in the Surakarta area.

"Child prostitutes have sexual abuse experiences, too. If not helped, the children will think that they don't have dignity, feel tormented and so worthless that it makes it easier to decide to work as a prostitute," Emmy said.

"The number is high here. It also amazes me," she said.

The foundation handled 20 rape or sexual assault cases involving 33 children from 1999 to 2001. Of the victims, 14 were boys and 19 girls.

Irwanto, head of the privately run Atmajaya University research center, said it was still rare for groups or activists to dedicate their work to handling abused children.

He said shelters should be built to help the victims to get intense counseling or therapy, as well as providing a refuge for children under threat.

In some cases, it was better for the volunteer to visit the children in their homes instead of putting them in shelters.

"For young victims, they still need a familiar atmosphere and the mother could help console them if they experience trauma during the counseling sessions," he said.

Irwanto cautioned that some nongovernmental groups working with street children failed to address their need for counseling as they were mostly victims of violence.

"Street lives are harsh and the street kids are often exposed to sexual violence. Therapy is urgent for them because they tend to be abusive, too, if they aren't healed of their internal wounds."

Providing therapy for victims of abuse is urgent but it is difficult to provide here. It involves money, from the doctor's examination, medical prescriptions and even making a police report, he said, adding that psychological counseling was also very expensive.

Irwanto, who is himself a psychologist, said he organized activities to encourage his students to work with underprivileged kids.