Many Unwanted Babies Abandoned, Driven by More Than Just Poverty

Jakarta — Over the past fortnight, several cases of baby abandonment have come under scrutiny as infants are left discarded on streets, wrapped in shopping bags and plastic carrier bags.

The phenomenon has raised urgent questions about why parents would abandon their own biological children.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) has emphasised that baby abandonment cases are not solely triggered by poverty, but are closely linked to complex family problems. “Family and alternative care issues arise, for example, from family divorce, custody disputes. When families divorce, child support is not provided. Divorce also leads to neglect of other child rights and includes violence against children,” said KPAI Vice Chair Jasra Putra in a telephone interview on Monday, 10 March 2026.

Jasra explained that failures in family function can directly impact child protection. “For instance, if a child is born from an unwanted pregnancy situation, then ultimately the child becomes affected—meaning they are not cared for by their own family or biological mother. That is one factor,” he said.

From an economic perspective, there are cases where parents abandon their children because they cannot provide adequate living conditions. “If a child is born, for example, in conditions of poverty, as in Pasar Minggu, this can also be a factor—how in such extreme poverty situations, the child becomes the primary victim,” Jasra noted.

Additionally, Jasra believes that mental health factors can also drive parents to abandon their newborns. “For instance, a mother who has given birth may experience postnatal depression and be unwilling to care for the child. So we find, on average, such backgrounds in the cases we uncover related to baby abandonment,” he said.

In Pejaten, Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, a baby girl was abandoned in a food cart. A resident named Dinda (20) discovered the infant after hearing the baby’s continuous crying.