Festival celebrates work, talents of street children
EXPRESS YOURSELF: Marginalized children of Greater Jakarta paint pictures at a festival in Proklamasi Park on Friday. JP/Ricky Yudhistira
Festival celebrates work, talents of street children
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
More than 2,000 street children from 37 communities around Jakarta are taking part in a three-day cultural festival that began Friday at Proklamasi Park in Central Jakarta.
The festival, called "Children: The struggle to break the limit", is aimed at giving the marginalized children the opportunity to express their interests and talents.
"It is time for us, adults, to appreciate (street children) because they manage to survive despite the difficulty of their life by working hard," Sandyawan Sumardi, founder of Sanggar Ciliwung Merdeka, the non-profit organization that organized the festival, told The Jakarta Post.
It took about three months of preparation to put together the event, which is being funded independently, without donations from the government or foreign institutions.
Organizing committee chairman Stephanie Iriana expressed hope the festival would help unite street children, and those who work with them, to pressure the government to provide them assistance.
"All street children communities must demand the government pay serious attention to providing them proper access to education and work placement when they get older. It is supposed to be their (the government’s) responsibility to help all members of society," she said.
Topan, a street musician attending the festival, said it was a good opportunity to make friends.
"It is also a good place for me to increase my knowledge and skills," said the 16-year-old boy.
Indonesia, which will mark National Children’s Day on July 23, continues to struggle to ensure legal protection for children. This is particularly true for street children, who are often the victims of physical and sexual abuse by adults.
Sandyawan said the event was not meant to commemorate National Children’s Day.
"It is held as an opening act to commemorate the International Day of Peace on Sept. 21," he said.
He said the government and society should be more concerned by the victimization and trafficking in children.
Proklamasi Park is also the current home for a number of victims of the mudflow in Sidoarjo, East Java, who arrived several weeks ago to protest the government’s handling of the disaster.
