DPR Member Calls on Local Governments to Open Hotline for Sexual Violence Complaints

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Eka Widodo, a member of Commission II of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR), has urged local governments to open complaint services, or hotlines, for sexual violence cases. He asked the Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) to require regional administrations to establish such complaint channels. ‘Kemendagri needs to enact a policy mandating that all Pemda have a sexual violence complaint hotline that is responsive and active 24 hours a day,’ Eka said in a statement on Tuesday (19 May 2026). He argued that the hotline would accelerate and facilitate coordination among the public, law enforcement agencies, and local governments in cases of sexual violence. ‘Local governments must not be passive. They must proactively prevent, educate, support victims, and move quickly in handling cases of sexual violence,’ he added. With proper oversight, he believed such cases could be prevented early. ‘Commission II of the DPR RI will monitor how serious Pemda are about prevention and handling of sexual violence. Pemda are the frontline in eradicating sexual violence,’ Eka said.

Previously, Coordinating Minister for PMK Muhaimin Iskandar, also known as ‘Cak Imin’, suggested that there be a hotline in every district to receive complaints of sexual violence occurring at pesantren. ‘I am prepared to back Kemenko PMK, back the Ministry of Religious Affairs, and the Ministry of Education and Culture for rapid construction of an effective hotline. The hotline should not only be in the centre, but in each district,’ Cak Imin said during an interview at the BPJamsostek Plaza Office in South Jakarta on Friday (8 May 2026). ‘These are signs of an iceberg phenomenon that must be watched. I have concluded that there is an emergency in addressing violence in educational institutions or pesantren,’ he added.