Street children rise in number, bring more complex problems

Street children rise in number, bring more complex problems

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The past few years have seen an alarming increase in the
number of street children on Jakarta's streets. To confirm this,
just go to any major intersection, where every time the traffic
lights turn red children aged between six and 10 flock to peer
into car windows and beg.

Some clap their hands in accompaniment to the incoherent tune
they try to sing to earn that extra Rp 100 (about US$0.10) from
kind motorists. Others do not bother, and just stare at you
through the window while crying "ma'am, give me money for food".

It would be pitiful if it wasn't so annoying, because once you
give them a coin, others nearby get wind of it and the next thing
you know you'll have a dozen children peering through your
windows.

But such is life on the streets of Jakarta, and while the
hotshots in parliament play at their political power game, more
and more children are forced by poverty to turn to the streets.

The phenomenon of children forced to make a living on the
streets is just one of many instances of the deprivation of
children's basic rights, and not only in Indonesia but in all of
the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), especially following the economic crisis that
began in July.

ASEAN comprises Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand,
Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Children have the right to protection from trafficking and
abduction, children have the right to protection from neglect,
the right to play, the right to protection from sexual abuse, the
right to protection from hazardous work, and the right to
education.

These are some of the rights of children stipulated by the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which came
into force in 1990. Any violations of this convention result in
depriving a child of his or her rights.

Lily I. Rilantono, president of the Indonesian Child Welfare
Foundation (YKAI), noted that thinking on the issue of deprived
children had shifted since the 1960's when the concern was
strictly for orphans and children with handicap problems.

Today, the problems facing children are much more diverse,
ranging from abuse and exploitation, neglect, and juvenile
delinquency, to physically and mentally disabled children,
disadvantaged children, and children affected by AIDS.

However, these problems are often interrelated, and a child in
difficult circumstances usually faces other risks.

A street child is prone to sexual exploitation or involvement
in hazardous work. And a child working in a brothel or living on
the streets may be escaping abuse at home.

Parents who abuse their children may be victims of drug
addiction, and children who are involved in commercial sexual
exploitation may be infected with HIV/AIDS and be addicted to
drugs.

The children who peer into car windows begging for coins are
only a small part of the tens of thousands who fall under the
category of street children. Others become street musicians who
lighten up the dreariness of bus and train rides.

Still others work as shoe polishers, newspaper peddlers, and
may even become thieves or pickpockets.

A study by Atma Jaya University's Community Study and
Development Center shows that about 75,000 children below 18
years of age in Indonesia are street children.

The study also shows that many of these children begin working
on the street before the age of 12, and that only 43 percent
still go to school.

"They (street children) become a small community and create a
marginalized subculture, adapting different values and
attitudes," Lily said, adding that they are exposed to other
kinds of abuse, whether it be physical, mental or sexual.

The problem goes on, and where government aid fails to make a
difference -- largely due to limited budgets -- non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) have stepped in to help.

The assistance provided by NGOs ranges from the provision of
supplementary food, health services, provision of scholarships
and school equipment, education and skills training, and economic
empowerment for children's parents.

Funding for these NGOs comes from international and domestic
donor institutions, the government, the private sector, community
contributions and individual donors.

Without these contributions from society, who knows how many
more children would have to suffer on the streets of Jakarta.

Some NGOs focusing on deprived children in Jakarta:

* Anak Bangsa Foundation. Address: Jl. Lontar Atas No. 143,
Kebon Melati, Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta. Activity: Focus on
the empowerment of street children and their parents.

* Bangun Mitra Sejati Foundation. Address: Jl. H. Baping No.
10. RT10/RW07 Susukan, Ciracas, East Jakarta 13750. Phone: (021)
8416965, 87793849. Activity: Focus on community development and
training center.

* Gema Mandiri Bangsa Foundation. Address: Jl. Manggarai
Utara Gg. Langgar No. 61, South Jakarta. Phone: (021) 83706371.
Activity: Focus on the empowerment of street children and their
parents, and community development.

* Indonesian Child Welfare Foundation (YKAI). Address: Jl.
Teuku Umar 10, Central Jakarta. Phone: (021) 327308, 327316,3107030.
Email: icwf@indosat.net.id Activity: Focus on child welfare.

* Kesejahteraan Anak Pinggiran Foundation (YKAP). Address:
Jl. Tebet Timur II G No. 11, South Jakarta. Phone: (021) 8301046.
Email: ykap@centrin.net.id Activity: Focus on the provision of
educational assistance for kindergarten and primary school children.

* Daya Dharma Institution. Address: Jl. Katedral No. 5, Central
Jakarta. Phone: (021) 3346172. Activity: Focus on the provision of
educational and health assistance, and community development.

* Setia Kawan Mandiri Foundation. Address: Jl. Poncol Raya
No. 2, RT07/RW03, Pondok Bambu, East Jakarta. Phone: (021) 4529820.
Activity: Focus on the empowerment of street children and their
parents, and community development.