Parents Become the Main Fortress of Protection in the PP Tunas Era

Minister for Population and Family Development and Head of the National Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN), Wihaji, has invited all parents to be more present and active in accompanying their children in the digital life. This is important as a form of support for Government Regulation Number 17 of 2025 on the Governance of Electronic Systems in Child Protection (PP Tunas). “We invite parents to be more present in children’s digital lives by accompanying, supervising, and becoming the first place for children to share stories. Ultimately, the strongest fortress for child protection in the digital era is not just technology, but the family,” said Wihaji in Jakarta on Sunday (29/3/2026). Wihaji emphasised that although policies restricting social media access for children under 16 are important, such rules can still be circumvented by children, for example by borrowing parents’ devices or using adult identities. Therefore, the success of PP Tunas greatly depends on the active role of the family. “Technology will only be effective if supported by active parental involvement,” he said. According to Wihaji, the family as the smallest unit in society becomes the main foundation in shaping values of protection and supervision for children. Meanwhile, the Minister of Communication and Digital (Menkomdigi), Meutya Hafid, affirmed that the government will not compromise with digital platforms that do not comply with child protection regulations. Through Ministerial Regulation of Komdigi Number 9 of 2026, platforms are required to provide parental consent mechanisms and child control features. Administrative sanctions up to access disconnection are ready to be imposed on violators. PP Tunas itself officially takes effect from 28 March 2026. This regulation was born to protect children’s privacy and data in the increasingly vulnerable digital space. In the regions, the Regional People’s Representative Council (DPRD) of Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, welcomes the implementation of PP Tunas positively. Chairman of the Central Lombok DPRD, Lalu Ramdan, said this regulation addresses public concerns over the negative impacts of social media on children, such as changes in dress styles, exposure to online gambling, and sexual violence cases that start from introductions on social media. “Protecting children is a collective task. Parents must be more active in supervising children’s use of mobile phones and social media, as well as limiting access to motorised vehicles for those not yet of age,” he said in Praya on Sunday. Child psychologist at Awal Bros Hospital Batam, Maryana, views PP Tunas as a positive step, but emphasises that regulations alone are not enough without parental supervision at home. She revealed that cases of anxiety and gadget addiction in children in Batam are increasing, even occurring at very young ages.