Pornography among students leaves parents worried
Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang
A man was telling a colleague that his wife was so shocked that she lost her appetite for two days after finding a copy of an erotic tabloid and two pornographic VCDs in their son's school bag.
"It is hard to believe that our 17-year-old son confessed that he and his fellow students could easily obtain pornographic VCDs and such magazines being sold outside the school at low, bargain prices," the 45-year old man told his friend while having lunch.
The talk was overheard by The Jakarta Post at a food stall next to the Tangerang General Hospital last week.
Lukman, the father, told the Post later that his son studies at Yupentex senior high school on Jl. Veteran.
He said the rampant circulation of pornographic material was a major factor contributing to juvenile delinquency.
"What makes us parents most concerned is the long-term effects of pornography, which could ruin the minds and morality of our children," he said.
Relevant institutions in the municipality of Tangerang should take stern measures against vendors selling pornographic material, especially if they operate near schools, he said.
He also blamed teachers for having failed to control the students.
Teachers say that it is beyond their control.
"We can only control students at schools. What they do outside schools is fully beyond teachers' control," a teacher at Yupentex senior high school told the Post.
However, the teacher added that, as pornographic VCDs and bawdy tabloids were freely offered for sale near schools, the private school conducted random searches of students at least once a week.
Meanwhile, Tangerang Police said they had conducted a series of raids against VCD vendors at Pasar Anyar earlier this month.
"Even though the police managed to seize hundreds of pornographic VCDs from street vendors, this effort will only reduce the number of porn VCDs in the market," police chief Adj. Comr. Affan Richwanto said.
VCD vendors take precautions against the possibility of police action, with many of them hiding pornographic VCDs for sale elsewhere, he said, adding that vendors who target students often moved from one place to another.
As for the tabloids, they were still tolerable, he said, referring to the various publications with pictures of semi-naked women and sex stories.
A VCD vendor operating his business on the sidewalk in front of a state vocational high school across from the Tangerang Women's Penitentiary on Jl. TMP Taruna, admitted that he had sold many pornographic VCDs to school students. He said he would move from his current location to another place soon.
"Police confiscated my merchandise at Pasar Anyer twice and I lost Rp 500,000 along with 96 VCDs. That's why I prefer to move from one place to another," he told the Post.
A VCD costs Rp 5,000 while a copy of a hot tabloid is available for around Rp 3,000.
Tangerang Municipal Education Agency head Nana Sukarna said that, earlier this month, a hearing with the council's commission E on educational matters recommended mayor M. Thamrin issue a regulation banning the sale of pornographic VCDs and erotic tabloids near schools.
To date, the mayor has yet to respond to the recommendation, while administration spokesman Hery Kusnady failed to provide any clarification regarding the issue.