Parents deem social media restrictions for children essential

Semarang - Several parents in Semarang consider restricting social media access for children under 16 years old to be very important in protecting children. “I completely agree. We must indeed ‘protect’ children from social media content. Social media nowadays is really bad,” said Widy Astari (35), a resident of Pedurungan, on Saturday. As a parent, she admitted that she has so far sufficiently limited her child’s access to social media, including access to gadgets. The mother of two children said that she still provides gadget access to her child, but with restrictions on the content that may be viewed. Instead, she buys her child a device similar to a gadget containing educational games, English lessons, and mathematics for play as well as learning purposes. Eliza Wido (48), a resident of West Semarang, also agrees with restricting social media access for children because it is indeed risky for child behavioural development if left unchecked. “My child just got a mobile phone. The other day when using my phone, he already used TikTok but on a shared account. Now that he has his own phone, it’s harder to advise him,” she said. Therefore, she no longer provides a data quota so that her child cannot access social media as usual, though she worries about sharing internet connections with friends. “This is the target; after Eid, there’s no more playing at friends’ places. Friends coming here are also not allowed,” said the mother of the child. She admitted that the social environment also greatly influences children, for example, if all friends have gadgets, they want one too. “I also hope that schools help raise awareness and provide understanding to the children. Coincidentally, my child is in sixth grade of elementary school and is not allowed to bring a phone to school,” she said. Meanwhile, Azka (14), a student at an Islamic junior high school in Semarang, admitted that she has been given restrictions by her parents in accessing social media. “At home, I can only hold the phone for two hours. Except on holidays. At school, sometimes I’m asked to bring the phone for studying, but it’s only used during lessons,” she said. The government through the Ministry of Communication and Digital (Kemenkomdigi) has officially implemented Government Regulation Number 17 of 2025 on the Protection and Governance of Electronic System Operators in Child Protection (PP Tunas) on 28 March 2026. The regulation targets restrictions on social media usage for children under 16 years old on high-risk digital platforms.