Lampung DPRD member states social media restrictions protect children's psychology

From field observations, excessive use of social media and online games often leads to a decline in children’s attention to their obligations. Bandarlampung (ANTARA) - Lesty Putri Utami, a member of the Lampung Regional People’s Representative Council (DPRD), stated that restrictions on social media and online games are a government initiative to protect the psychological development of the younger generation amid the rapid advancement of digital technology. “Of course, the central government’s regulation limiting children’s age for using social media and online games is a positive step to protect our young generation,” she said when contacted from Bandarlampung on Friday. According to her, this restriction policy is expected to create a balance between technology utilisation and children’s social development, allowing them to grow healthily both mentally and socially. “In this digital era, children can easily access various content through gadgets, so clear boundaries are needed. Even if we look at it, the use of social media and online games has more negative impacts than benefits if not properly supervised. So, the government’s step is quite good and deserves support,” she said. “In addition, children’s social interactions are also at risk of being disrupted. This certainly affects the psychological development and social attitudes of children. They might become less interactive with their surroundings,” she added. Nevertheless, she believes that the role of parents remains the primary key in controlling children’s technology use. Government restrictions are only a supporting step, not a replacement for the family’s role. “As a parent myself, I always implement an app-based monitoring system to track my child’s digital activities. Through the app, I can set gadget usage time and monitor the content accessed,” she said. Therefore, she also urged parents to become more tech-literate so as not to be left behind by their children in terms of digital device usage. “Parents must understand technology even more than their children. That way, supervision can run effectively,” she said. It is known that the government has officially issued Minister of Communication and Digital Regulation (Permen Komdigi) Number 9 of 2026, which regulates the delay of social media access for children under 16 years old on high-risk digital platforms. The policy will begin implementation on 28 March 2026. This policy supports the previous regulation, Government Regulation Number 17 of 2025 on the Governance of Electronic System Operators in Child Protection (PP Tunas).