Chairman of DPR Commission VIII Urges Thorough Investigation into Pati Santriwati Rape Case

“If that’s certain, yes. Besides accelerating the process, we are pushing for it to be resolved thoroughly,” said Marwan to reporters on Friday (8/5/2026). He suspects there was negligence in the case. Because, he assesses, the number of alleged victims indicates the possibility of other parties providing space for the perpetrator to continue his actions. “Because in my view, it seems there was negligence, because the incident happened for so long, there are so many victims who were bullied, it feels like this has been going on for a long time,” he stated. “If around 50 became victims, it’s possible that some have already reported or protested. But why could it happen? This is what we are pushing to be investigated thoroughly. Who are the actors who gave way to this perpetrator to keep acting so that there are so many victims,” he continued. This PKB politician also encouraged the victims to be brave in reporting. However, he emphasised the importance of investigating the reasons why the victims have not dared to speak out until now. “So many why could it happen, so long why couldn’t they speak out, why weren’t they brave enough to report. Well, this is important, so if it’s about children, come on, speak out, but the most important thing is why the children weren’t brave enough to speak out? Who could pressure these children? That’s what needs to be investigated,” he said. In addition, Marwan requested that the status of the institution where the alleged harassment occurred be examined. According to him, the place is not necessarily a pondok pesantren right away. “In my view, this is actually not a pesantren. It’s just a kind of shelter for orphaned children and children who are not capable, even if it actually has classes because education is also provided,” he revealed. “Because if it’s a pesantren, according to the law, it’s not easy to establish a pesantren. There must be reading of yellow books, there must be dormitories, there must be a pondok, there must be a mosque, there must be local rooms. Don’t people say it’s a pesantren and then it’s called a pesantren. Let’s investigate thoroughly first, what kind of institution this is where the harassment occurred,” he added. Marwan also asked the government to investigate the parties that gave operational permits to the institution. He stressed the need for a thorough investigation to prevent similar cases. “Including who gave the permit for this institution? The Ministry of Religious Affairs or the Ministry of Social Affairs or who? Well, this is important to investigate everything so that it’s thorough,” he said. “Because institutions like this in the past also had cases in West Java, seemingly called pesantren but actually the actions were just gathering underprivileged children and orphans. That’s just a front, so labelling it pesantren, wait first, investigate thoroughly who this is,” he added. Previously, the suspect AS, a 52-year-old man suspected of raping dozens of santriwati in Pati Regency, was finally arrested by police in Wonogiri, Central Java. It turned out the suspect had fled to Bogor, Jakarta, up to Solo. Police said the suspect moved around areas before being arrested. Starting from Kudus, Bogor, Jakarta, Solo, and finally arrested in Wonogiri. “He went to Kudus first, then Bogor, continued to Jakarta, after that to Solo, then Wonogiri,” said the Head of Criminal Investigation at Pati Police Resort, Kompol Dika Hadian Widya Wiratama, when quoted by detikJateng on Thursday (7/5/2026).