Government plans center to care for street children

JAKARTA (JP): The government yesterday decided to open up an information center to deal with the problem of street children.

The center will coordinate the activities of various private foundations which look after the interests of street children, according to Suyono Yahya, the secretary to Coordinating Minister of People's Welfare Azwar Anas.

Azwar yesterday held a monthly meeting with ministers under his charge, including those holding the portfolios of social services, religious affairs, population and women's affairs, the Antara news agency reported.

During the meeting it was disclosed that the number of street children in Indonesia's large cities has been rising and that although a number of private foundations are already active in caring for them, greater coordination is necessary.

Minister of Social Services Inten Suweno, according to Suyono, plans to encourage people to take them in as foster children so that they could become productive citizens one day.

The meeting also agreed on the need to tighten restrictions on the import of traditional Chinese medicines into Indonesia.

Under a recent agreement signed by the ministers of health of the two countries in Beijing, the Chinese authorities agreed to pool all medicines it exports to Indonesia through a health agency which certifies the products, Suyono said.

These medicines must also be subject to inspection by the Food and Drug Supervision Agency of the Ministry of Health, he added.

Traditional Chinese medicines have become popular in Indonesia in recent years.

Another decision made at the meeting yesterday was to expand military training for school and university students in Indonesia.

"If in the past, they were taught mostly theory, in the future, they should also be involved in training in national defense," Suyono said. (emb)