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Statement by NewYork, 9 May2002
Mr. Chairman, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, The human rights of individuals and the community at large, including families are protected by the obligations and responsibilities as set forth under the law. However, as far as the rights of children are concerned, the nation as a whole, bears the responsibility to protect them by providing the necessary facilities, and more importantly to ensure access to them, in order to support their growth and development in the most acceptable and comprehensive manner. From the nation’s point of view, given the fact that children are our very future, each child must have the inherent right to a life in dignity, growth and development as well as to be accorded the protection against acts of violence and discrimination. In this contemporary world and considering the current plight of children, we should redouble our efforts to assure greater care and more focused attention. For example, in the field of education, the approximate number of children that did not complete school in Indonesia during the period of 1998/199 reached 4.5 million, as compared to the situation of normalcy where out of 30 million primary school children, only 1.2 children did attend school. But during the current financial crisis, the number peaked at 8 million students. This is primarily due to the fact that Indonesian households below the poverty line have drastically increased to 40 million families. In this regard, it should be noted that rising food prices have resulted in 100 million Indonesians consuming less than 2,100 calories a day. This has impacted children the most and is reflected by the data of 39% of children experiencing malnutrition and thus severely impacting their educational performance. Not only have primary students experienced this problem but so also have Junior High School students. They have been leaving school prematurely at a rate of 6.5 million. The negative impact of school drop--outs will surely affect the capabilities of the future human resources of the country. Indeed, the problem has reached a critical stage. The political scene, including the riots occurring in different parts of Indonesia during the past five years, has certainly not helped the situation. On the contrary, it has significantly contributed to the confusion concerning the future of children. In particular, conflict among ethnic and religious groups have affected the economic livelihood of families, and posing far reaching consequences - loss of life, poor performance of children in the academic field, food shortages and hence resulting in malnutrition, sicknesses. This we hope will not lead to a lost generation. Mr. Chairman, A looming problem in Indonesia is the issue of homelessness among children. The tragedy is that they have taken to living on the streets, neglected and alienated from their families and marginalized from society. The streets of course are hardly the natural environment for their habitat and regrettably, the state of 50 thousand children can only be described as “marginal, frail and exploited”. Their very survival in the city and the dire need to support their families have resulted in them performing any kind of labor or job, whether legally or illegally. Such a tragedy demands concrete action to prevent children from becoming fodder for cheap labor. The glaring statistics following the financial crisis attests to the worsening conditions. Today, approximately 2.5 million children are forced into the labor market with 2000 working amidst high-risk workplace jobs such as “jermal” or sea-faring. In 1990 the number rose to 2.4 million and then decreased to 1.7 million in 1995. But in 1998, the number rose to 2.5 million. This was the scenario regardless of the ILO Convention No. 183 concerning Minimum Age (1999) and ILO Convention No. 182 regarding the Worst Forms of Child Labor (2000), respectively. Mr. Chairman, In light of the constitutional duties and functions of the House of Representatives (DPR), my Government works tirelessly towards allocating a higher budget to handle the problems posed marginalized children. Our efforts have also centered on passing a children protection bill with a view to adopting the Children Protection Convention. We are taking this solemn step in light of the tenuous situation, particularly the conditions afflicting children needing the immediate attention of the law and as mandated by the 1999 National Guidance. With this in mind, it deemed an imperative to begin human resources training from an early age so that they are accorded the protection from exploitation and given the unstinted support needed in order for them to develop to their full potential as children before they reach adulthood. I thank you, Mr. Chairman.
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