Forensic experts try to help victims of abuse

JAKARTA (JP): No less than 226 cases of violence against women and children were recorded by Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) last year of which a third were cases of child molestation.

However, forensic experts said on Monday that the true number could be four times the official report.

"We believe the real number of abused victims could be four times the existing data ... since many cases involving domestic violence were not reported," Budi Sampurna, leading forensic expert and chairman of Indonesian Doctors Association for Violence and Human Rights Care (PDIPK-HAM) told The Jakarta Post.

"The cases were recorded from June to December 2000 from patients treated by RSCM. Most of them were Greater Jakarta residents," Budi said on the sidelines of forensic training for paramedics in handling violence and abuse victims.

From the existing records, a total of 99 cases were child sexual molestations and 12 others were child abuse cases.

The remainder of the cases were suffered by women such as domestic violence and other kinds of torture, Budi said.

The National Commission for Children's Human Rights (Komnas Anak-Anak) revealed that 341 cases of sexual violence towards children aged from 18 months to 16 years were recorded last year.

"We recorded the data from Komnas Anak-Anak's six chapters in Jakarta, West Java, Central Java and East Java as well as South Sumatra and North Sumatra," Komnas Anak-Anak's coordinator for economy and sexual exploitation issues Arist Merdeka Sirait said on Monday.

Arist also believed that the number of violence cases towards women and children are far higher than what was recorded.

"If only the other hospitals would set up a crisis center like RSCM and record the cases, we would have a better understanding of how violence occurs in the inner circle of the family as well as in our society and we can do something to prevent it," the activist said.

Monday's training, which was opened by Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra, was aimed at upgrading the forensic skills of paramedics and doctors, including their sensitivities towards cases of physical and sexual violence.

"We hope that doctors and paramedics can gain a broader view about human rights by caring for the victims of violence instead of just treating them," minister Yusril said.

Budi Sampurna said that paramedics should be able to recognize possible abuse cases "before asking questions of the patients".

"Forensics has always been associated with dead bodies. It's a wrong and misleading view. Forensics on abuse cases are important because we are trying to save the living.

"Therefore, in the long run, there must be a regulation that obliges doctors to report violent cases to the authorities," Budi added.

RSCM has opened a crisis center for victims of violence with a hotline (021) 316-2261, while Komnas Anak-Anak can be reached at (021) 835-0420. Mitra Perempuan's Woman Crisis Center can be reached at (021) 837-90010.

National Commission for Human Rights member and retired police general Koesparmono Irsan added that there should be a comprehensive law that protects both women and children from such violence and abuse.

He said there were many cases of abuse experienced by women workers returning from abroad, but they have never been treated or resolved.

"We still have a long way to go," he lamented. (edt)