Lestari Moerdijat Urges Government to Take Action to Protect 200,000 Children Exposed to Online Gambling
Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI, Lestari Moerdijat, has urged for comprehensive and collaborative steps from all elements of the nation to respond to the emergency situation of children’s exposure to online gambling in Indonesia. Massive action is needed immediately to protect the next generation from the threat of character degradation in the digital space.
“Prevention of online gambling exposure for children and teenagers must be carried out immediately and massively together to protect the nation’s next generation,” said Lestari in a written statement on Friday (15/5).
Recent data from the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) shows a worrying number, with nearly 200,000 Indonesian children exposed to online gambling. Of this number, 80,000 are children under the age of 10.
Lestari, who is also known as Rerie, emphasized that this threat is not just a financial issue, but a serious threat to the development of national human resources. According to her, children who are accustomed to the “instant-win-lose” mechanism will lose their understanding of the value of process, effort, and honesty.
“This is not just a financial threat, but also a crisis in the formation of the character of the nation’s next generation,” said Rerie, who is also a member of Commission X of the DPR RI.
As a strategic step, the legislator from the II electoral district of Central Java encourages three main points, namely strengthening digital literacy consistently for children and parents, comprehensive protection in the digital space, and strict law enforcement against online gambling syndicates, as well as providing reporting mechanisms and psychosocial rehabilitation services for child victims.
Rerie also asked relevant institutions to convey measurable targets from child protection policies to the public. This is important to ensure the effectiveness of the planned prevention measures.
The member of the High Council of the NasDem Party concluded by emphasizing that strong collaboration between families, schools, communities, and the government is the key. The safety of children in the digital space must be a top priority in order to create a healthy, well-charactered, and competitive generation in the future. (RO/Z-10)