World Street Children News :: Indonesia Streetkid News

Street kids take two days off for fun and learning

The Jakarta Post, Bogor

For most students, July means a two-week holiday. But for street children it means two days off from miserable life on Jakarta’s streets and a chance to learn tricks that can keep them alive.

A two-day "Lindungi Aku" (Save Me) jamboree in Taman Buah Mekar Sari, Bogor, allowed around 600 street children from 16 of the city’s marginalized areas to have some fun and participate in educational activities at the same time.

Hery Sebastian, the jamboree’s coordinator, said the event was held to commemorate National Children’s Day, which falls July 23 and promotes the protection of marginalized children.

"The street children are fragile to violence as they live with danger most of the time," Hery said.

Jamboree participants joined a discussion about drugs, sex and sexual abuse. Speakers from the Love the Children of the Nation Foundation (YCAB) provided the kids with information about the dangers of drugs and also explained to them their rights.

The 11th jamboree is held by Sahabat Anak, a non-profit organization concerned with providing education to impoverished children.

According to the children themselves, most have suffered from both sexual abuse on the streets and drug problems.

Hery said meager protection for street children and weak law enforcement of the crimes perpetrated against them are caused by a lack of understanding of the importance of counseling, difficulties in accessing law bodies and lacking support from family members.

"So this jamboree also aims to persuade the children that they are valuable and are able to protect themselves from bad influences."

There are 10 integral stipulations in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, also known as the Geneva Declaration, on the universal rights of children: equality, food, normal development, education, protection from exploitation, a name, relief in times of distress, recreation, health and a nationality.

According to 2005 Social Affairs Ministry data, there are about 30,000 street children in Jakarta.

The jamboree also included a bonfire session, activities requiring creativity and fun games.

"We are trying to build their creativity by asking them to express everything on a piece of paper then exhibit it," said Linayati Tjindra, a jamboree committee member. "We also want them to have fun with games that teach them about teamwork."

During the organized games period, a child calling himself Hendi, though acknowledging it is not his real name, said he enjoyed the jamboree.

"I have so much fun during the jamboree as I gain many presents from the contests here," said he child, who "works" in Grogol.

Hendi earns money as a street singer and sometimes as a "three-in-one" jockey.

"I could earn around Rp 20,000 a day," he said, adding that he prefers life on the streets over going to school because he was already able to make money and put food on the table.

"I sometimes use the money to buy glue, so I can sniff it and get high and dream," said the 16-year-old, who first learned about glue sniffing from a friend two years ago.

"We once rehabilitated him, but he had withdrawals. Now we are trying to help him stop again," Hery said in reference to Hendi’s glue sniffing addiction.

Drug trade an easy trap for street children

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

They live with no roofs over their heads and no parents to look after them. They have to deal with the toughest experiences the streets have to offer.

And above all that, street children are also prone to exploitation as drug traffickers, recent research has revealed.

Some 16 percent of street children in Greater Jakarta are or have been involved in drug trafficking, a study by the International Labor Organization (ILO) says.

The study of 255 street children in East, West and South Jakarta found 40 admitted acting as drug traffickers.

"Most of them are purely exploited in the illegal trade," ILO’s program officer for child drug trafficking, Dede Saraswati, said recently.

According to the ILO report, children as young as 13 are engaged in Jakarta’s drugs trade, while around four percent of all drug users are aged under 17.

The latest report and earlier research show there are at least four ways in which children enter the drug trade.

According to Tarumanagara University psychologist Irwanto, drug use and addiction is one path for children to become drug dealers. Orphans or runaways in need of money are also susceptible to falling into the drug trade, as are children closely related to drug users or traffickers or those linked to drug dealers at a very young age.

Peer pressure and the exploitation of children’s naivete were cited as the third and fourth factors pushing children into the trade.

Surya — not his real name — was one child forced by circumstances into drug dealing.

Coming from as a refugee from Ambon several years ago, the 17-year-old boy was promised by his uncle that he could continue his education in the capital.

However, Surya soon became restless and ran away from his uncle. Out on the streets, he met someone who offered him a Rp 150,000 loan — to be repaid anytime at 20 percent interest — for him to become a drug retailer.

Surya alternated between being a street musician and a marijuana dealer in Condet, East Jakarta. He soon ended up using the drugs he sold himself.

Surya has given up drug dealing, but he admitted was still a marijuana user.

"The smell makes me want to sing even more," he said.

Surya’s experience, along with other reports of child drug dealers in Jakarta, represents only the tip of the iceberg.

"In most instances, being very young and having either family or financial problems makes children the most vulnerable to being lured and recruited to sell drugs," Irwanto explained.

"When they’re already using drugs, that puts them at the most risk," he said.

A separate 2005 survey by the Tarumanagara University School of Psychology revealed that 92 percent of drug users had been involved in trafficking at least once.

Two 16-year-old boys from East Jakarta — who also asked to be anonymous — were introduced to drug dealers by their cousin and friends.

Both have delivered drugs since, with one of them also packing shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine) and using putaw (low-grade heroin) since 2000.

But it is the factor of childhood naivete that requires more complicated intervention to deal with personal relationships between adult dealers and child traffickers.

For instance, if children simply fall into drug dealing because they are naive, why don’t they grow out of it when they are old enough to understand what they are doing?

Money of course is the obvious answer. But more than that, for street children who spend their lives protecting themselves, "maintaining good relationships with influential people" was another reason they stuck with the drug trade, Irwanto concluded.

Jakarta: A city with a big heart and an unopened wallet

Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Twenty-five-year-old student Dyah Apsari keeps small change on the dashboard of her car. Every day, she restocks the pile. The money goes on the daily expenses of driving: parking fees, self-appointed traffic directors, buskers, street children and beggars.

Fashion stylist Ayunda Merkhanty, 25, gives away up to Rp 10,000 a day to beggars, while office worker Dave Ardian Seta, 27, also keeps money spare.

Part of life in Jakarta is paying for this street-level charity. From people like Dyah, Ayunda and Dave, beggars, street children, and pengamen (street singers) can earn Rp 15,000 to Rp 30,000 a day, enough for their daily needs.

Almost all able Jakartans spare some of their money for charity, be they compelled by religious obligations or other motives. But only a few channel their money through philanthropic organizations. And if they do, very few are concerned with how the organizations use their money.

The city has a population of more than 7 million people, not including unregistered dwellers. The average Gross Domestic Regional Product per capita among those residents was over Rp 43 million per year, according to 2004 data. As a society that views giving as a social and often religious obligation, Jakarta has a great potential to give to philanthropic organizations.

According to Hamid Abidin, a researcher at the Public Interest Research and Advocacy Center, individual charity contributions in the city could be as high as Rp 9 trillion per year, higher than Jakarta’s 2007 budget allocation of Rp 6.08 trillion for education and health.

This bulk of money, however, is not distributed in an organized or effective way.

Hamid said that according to a 2004 survey in 11 cities — including Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang and Surabaya — more than 90 percent of donors gave their money directly to individuals and religious organizations. Donors would on average give the most money to individuals, such as family, friends, beggars and street children, averaging Rp 884,950 per year. Religious organizations received an average of Rp 483,000 per year from donors.

Hamid said 77 percent of donors also allocated Rp 301,500 per year to non-religious organizations such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and charities.

He said that giving money straight to individuals, the most popular method of giving in Indonesia, was in fact ineffective in lifting the needy out of poverty.

"It helps, but only in a temporary way. It doesn’t lift them from their position, and sometimes it makes them dependent on help," he said.

Indonesia Philanthropy Association member Rika Anggraini said giving to beggars on the street sets the wrong example. "People think they’ve done their part to help others by giving money to other people. But to lift up the poor and to provide them with a better life, giving money is not enough," she said.

However, Rika conceded that lack of trust in philanthropic organization was the main reason they were bypassed in favor of direct giving.

Rika said there was a gap between the money the public could be willing to donate and the shortage of transparent and accountable charity organizations.

However, Rika said a culture among Indonesia’s donors of rarely questioning how organizations would manage their money had contributed to organizations not preparing reports.

"There should be a paradigm shift here. People should start to donate through the right channels and demand reports on where the money goes. The government should also give out tax incentives to people who donate to accountable organizations," Rika said.

Rika said tax incentives would encourage people to donate to trustworthy organizations that had passed a "screening test".

"That way donors can be sure their money is going to the needy," Rika added.

Ayunda is a skeptic. She said one of the social problems that most troubled her was street children. "But I don’t really trust the organizations. They can be bogus and corrupt."

Dave said he donated annually to a mosque. But he said that however the mosque decide to use the money was its own business.

With its root in Islamic teachings, there is a saying in Indonesian culture that, when it comes to giving to charity, the left hand should not know what the right is doing. This has led people to give anonymously to charity and not ask for reports.

Hamid said some organizations are reliable, such as the religious philanthropy organizations Dompet Duafa and Badan Amil Zakat.

"People have a high awareness of helping others, which is shown when everyone helps out during disasters. But Indonesians should also be drawn to help out in more organized and fruitful ways. (They should) focus more on prevention than just giving out money," he said.

‘Provide scholarships for them’

Poverty is the main reason why children drop out of school to become beggars or hawkers to help their parents. Although the Constitution assures them the right to a better living, the number of neglected children continues to increase. The Jakarta Post asked some residents for their opinions on the issue.

Jenny, 30, is a communications consultant. She lives in Cempaka Putih, East Jakarta:

People understand that giving money to street children is not the right thing to do, however some people continue to do so because it’s the easiest way to help them.

I know that the government runs a number of programs for street children and neglected children in general, but they never seem to amount to much.

There are many community groups working to protect child rights in the country, however, and I believe they will make things better. I have seen some of them really help street children make the most of their situations.

They set up homeless shelters, run free weekend classes and donate books.

Luna, 28, is a public relations officer. She lives in Tangerang:

I have been working with clients who carry out corporate responsibility programs for unfortunate children. We have donated books to several independent schools run by community organizations that offer street children free education. We also help schools, especially those in slum areas, to improve their learning facilities.

I have suggested some of my clients run more programs for street children, such as providing scholarships for those who cannot afford to continue with their educations. But it’s easier said than done because awarding scholarships takes a lot of consideration and effort. We need to think about the sustainability of programs, something which often seems to be an afterthought.

– The Jakarta Post

          
‘Govt can’t help street children’

While children are guaranteed state protection under the law and in the Constitution, reality is often much different. In Jakarta, neglected and abused children can be found at virtually every major intersection. The Jakarta Post asked several residents for their opinions on the issue.

Ama Erithia, 30, is an assistant teacher at a mathematics course for children. She lives in Grogol, West Jakarta:

We cannot rely on the government to take care of street children and provide them with education and health services.

It is a good thing that many non-profit organizations focus on educating street children. They also provide them shelters as well as psychological assistance.

Personally, I want to give a hand to street children in the city, maybe by joining one of these NGOs. I think I could teach them in my spare time, such as on the weekend.

Fetty, 25, is a dancer. She lives in Bendungan Hilir, Central Jakarta:

Street children are not only a problem in developing countries, but also in developed ones. I went to Tokyo once, and saw that there were also street children and homeless people. However, we have so many of them here.

Given its inability to take care of the street children, the government should offer more support for community initiatives aimed at helping the children.

A prominent artist from Bandung, West Java, the late Harry Roesli, established a shelter and took care of many street children in his hometown. He also provided them with musical training to help them earn a living.

– The Jakarta Post

Amount of Street Children Rises
Monday, 05 February, 2007 | 14:42 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The amount of street children in Jakarta has risen quite sharply during the last two years.

In 2004, the Social Services Department recorded that there were 98.113 street children but by 2006, this amount had jumped to 144,889.

Makmur Sunusi, the Director General of Social Services and Rehabilitation, said the rise was closely related to the poverty rate, which also rose.

“The more poor people there are, the more street children there are,” he told Tempo two days ago (3/2).

This rise in the amount of street children started to be seen at the time of the fuel price increases in 2005.

People categorized as poor could no longer take care of their children so the children were forced to look for money on streets.

The Social Services Department has estimated that 75 percent of street children are from poor families.

“The remaining children are from families with histories of violence,” said Makmur.

On the other hand, street children’s access to education is smaller.

They are busy looking for money to survive and cannot pay school fees anymore.

The result, according to Makmur, is that most of street kids drop out of school.

He went on to say that now the government can only slow down the rise in the amount of street children.

“The key problem is poverty. If poverty goes down, so does the amount of street children,” said Makmur.

It is targeted that the amount of street children will be reduced by five percent in 2009.

Pramono

The Jakarta Post - School gives street children new hope

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung

The smile never disappeared from Indra’s face as he stumbled over the English words in the textbook he was holding. The 17-year-old simply repeated the words, with help from his teacher, ignoring the laughter of his friends.

Indra and his classmates are street children, living and working around the Rajabasa bus terminal in Bandarlampung, the provincial capital of Lampung. They are learning English in a makeshift classroom with the help of teacher Lili Istifiyati, 21.

Their classroom is really a small house, located along the highway connecting Bandarlampung and Kotaagung regency. It is filled with students every day from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The house, just 300 meters from the bus terminal, is owned by Musonnif, who has named it the Community Education Center.

Every day at 1 p.m., part of the front porch is turned into a classroom, with desks, plastic chairs and a whiteboard. In the guest room students study for their elementary school equivalency certificate.

There are around 200 students at the school and 20 teachers. The students are divided into those studying for their elementary school, junior high school and high school equivalency certificates.

‘ "We are overwhelmed with students taking the (high school equivalency) program because they did not pass the national high school final examination. We welcome them with open arms," said Musonnif.

Indra is attending the alternative school for his junior high school certificate.

After graduating from elementary school in 2000, Indra was forced to drop out because his parents could not afford to enroll him in junior high school.

"I’m happy to study here. Besides, I can still earn money and at the same time earn a certificate," said Indra.

Most of the students at the center come from poor families. During the day they work as newspaper boys, drivers’ assistants on public buses, car washers, construction workers, maids and shopkeepers.

Lili, the English teacher, said she was happy to be able help the students continue their education, although the work required extra patience and dedication.

"We have to adopt a different approach than with students at a formal school. We have to be able to befriend the students. We must also be more understanding if they miss school to earn money since some of them are the breadwinners for their families," said Lili, a graduate of a foreign language institute.

Another teacher at the school, Wilarsih, 39, said she was willing to accept less money for her work as long as the students were serious and eager to learn.

"Thank God, after two years of teaching the students are still eager to study. We are also happy that they passed the exams with flying colors," said Wilarsih, who also teaches at SDN 2 Rajabasa elementary school in Bandarlampung.

Wilarsih acknowledged it would be better if lessons could be conducted in proper classrooms, to help the students concentrate on their studies.

"However, there are no empty classrooms in the schools around Rajabasa district. Classrooms at state schools are already being used for evening classes, so the students have to make do with the available facilities," she said.

Despite the limitations, Musonnif said educational standards at his school were on a par with those at formal schools. "We have given our students tests using questions normally given to students at formal schools. Many of our students scored eights and nines out of 10 on the tests. Also, their examination results were good."

"Everything depends on the quality of the teachers. Besides formal school teachers, our school also employs fresh university graduates to teach," he said.

Musonnif travels around the city recruiting teachers who are willing to work for little money for a good cause.

"I say to the potential teachers that this is a humanitarian mission. They have to be willing to be paid Rp 140,000 (US$15.50) a month as a substitute for transportation costs, because I really don’t have the money and I get little assistance from the local government," Musonnif said.

The school receives Rp 8 million for the elementary school equivalency program and Rp 16 million for the junior high school program. Students are required to pay a Rp 10,000 monthly school fee. The money, said Musonnif, is used to buy textbooks, paper and pay the teachers’ small salaries.

He said all the work was worth it because it helped the students achieve a life they would otherwise have never known.

"I don’t intend to get anything from them. I’ll be happy if they benefit from the knowledge they have gained here. The important thing is that they realize they won’t be living on the streets and at the bus terminal forever."

The Jakarta Post - Govt to send street kids to school

National News - September 26, 2006
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government is initiating a program to send some 800,000 street children to school. Their parents, if they also live on the street, will be trained for work abroad or in other areas of the country.

The program will be jointly conducted by Manpower and Transmigration Minister Erman Suparno and Social Affairs Minister Bachtiar Chamsyah.

Erman said children living on the streets would sent to pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) and open high schools at the government’s expense, while adults would be trained to join labor export training programs or resettlement programs.

‘This is a new program that will start in January with the hope that there will be no more beggars and street singers at the traffic lights and in public buses in major cities,’ Erman told The Jakarta Post here over the weekend.

He said the government had allocated Rp 59 trillion (about US$6.4 billion) this year for effort.

He explained that street children aged seven to 18 would be sent to pesantren for elementary and secondary education before attending vocational programs at government-run training centers.

‘ "They will receive monthly cash aid to meet their daily needs while they study at the pesantren or open schools. After completing high school, they will undergo vocational training to ready them to work overseas or join the resettlement program," he said.

Erman said street singers who had already graduated from high school would be trained for overseas employment, and couples living on the streets would join the transmigration program.

"Working abroad, they are expected to earn at least Rp 1.5 million to Rp 2 million a month. Those joining the transmigration program will be resettled on sparsely inhabited islands across the archipelago," he said. He added that many impoverished parents have forced their children to beg on the streets to survive.

Marudin Simanihuruk, the director general for labor inspection at the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry, said he was still building a complete database on street children and street singers in major cities as well as on Islamic schools willing to participate.

"This program is part of the national movement to eliminate child labor and alleviate poverty," he said. "

Street Children & Child Labor
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Guest post: Street Children; other thoughts

Coming from a very systematic, rigid system of ruling, moving to Indonesia is a big eye-opener for me. What struck me most when I first came was the large number of street children roaming the streets selling crackers, matches, tabloids or wiping your screen or just holding out their hands begging for money. Street children in Bahasa Indonesia is “ anak jalanan”. I later realized the term does not only refer to children but anyone who is jobless and ‘helpless’ roaming the streets.

When I was traveling on a bus from Jogjakarta to Bandung sometime last year, a group of able-bodied men who called themselves street children boarded the bus for a while to entertain us with latest hot tunes in Indonesia. I did not give them anything since they look capable enough of landing themselves in proper jobs. They became persistent and started tugging at my shirt. I pretended I do not know the language and spoke in English telling them I do not like to be touched. Bad move! Cause now the whole bus started looking at me as if I’m some alien from outer space and some started to chat up with us, two foreign girls traveling alone. We slept throughout the whole 8 hours journey.

Street children are everywhere in Indonesia especially in thriving cities. Jakarta has the most number of street kids. Being the capital city, it attracts poor people, promising prosperity and good jobs. Slum housing lines every street and bridges in the city centre.

All these are very new to me. Where I come from, you never see anyone homeless or kids running around the streets begging. I shed a few tears as my heart goes out to the poor. I will unwind the windows to give them money. I was stopped by a mate, a Chinese Medanese. Not that I’m racist but I observed they are the more affluent ones and they try to avoid any association with the native Indonesians. This Chinese girl will never drive alone after 6pm and will lock everything when she’s driving. She said, “Do not trust the Indonesian. You never know if they will rape or rob you.” As she was driving, a few street kids crossed the road. She looked irritated and told me not to give them anything. She claimed that these kids are just creating trouble in the roads. They are owned by syndicate owners who will pounce on a chance of any kid getting knocked down by cars. They will approach the driver and will ask for large sums of money for medical fee of the child being hit. Most of the time, they will ask for 5 to 10 times more than what they have to pay. So, according to this Chinese girl, whoever accidentally hits these street kids on the road, they will reverse and hit them again until they die so they will escape paying exorbitantly for their medical fee. She said it so nonchalantly.

Poverty is really rampant in big cities in Indonesia. I once saw an infant about 2 years of age lying in the streets of Bandung. No signs of adults tending to him. There was also a boy, about 8, lying in a busy street in Medan, as if drugged. I heard a story about a maid who takes her employer’s 4 month old child out every time his parents were out and begged in the streets. The infant’s parents noticed that he was turning darker. ( Rich Indonesians hate tanned skin). One day their neighbour saw the maid begging and carrying their child in her arms at lunchtime. You can’t really blame these maids sometimes. They have mouths to feed and they are paid so miserably. A full-time stay-in maid gets paid about 300,000rp on the average. That is about 30 USD. If you think that is unfair enough, you’d be appalled to see how they are treated. Then again, not all employers are like that and not all employees are that innocent. I’ve got a horrifying maid story myself.

Narcotics are a really big problem in Indonesia. Some kids about age 7, I saw at the zoo, stopped me to ask for ciggies and I saw some sniffing glue on a high wall.
Some are really privileged they have connections with important people. I went to a really trippy club in Jakarta, said to be a drug centre. You do not see bottles of alcoholic beverages on the tables but bottles of mineral water. I must have appeared really loud in my red dress and must have attracted attention. A guy came up to me and asked what I would like to consume and told me it’s free for me. This place, is said to be owned by a son of an official so they seldom raid the place or they do it just for the sake of doing it. The authorities are not to be trusted. I have been warned not to hit the clubs alone,especially cause I’m a girl cause there are several ‘alligators’ who can bring me home even if I have a male companion with me. They are that powerful. I will be warned if there will be any raids on any particular Saturday night and I will be forbidden to go out because they said foreigners are more prone to be stopped by the authorities. They said these officials will be rewarded for catching foreigners in possession of narcotics. Some go to the extend of planting them in your pockets.

Then again, all these stories come from people who lead comfy lives locked behind high walls and fancy gates and who themselves own secret organizations or are in some ways connected to people who do. These are people who do not dare walk the streets alone or forgot what it is like to talk to others tactfully. These are the people who scorn the poor yet pay them a miserable amount of money to protect them and family, and dismiss them as and when they like without proper cause.

I felt so happy last April. We had a carnival in school and I saw a group of street kids peering from outside with a desire to join the games. I gave them some stamps on their arms through the wires and invited them in. They had a whale of a time playing and left thanking me like they’ve never thanked anyone before. They still remembered me. They will wave every time they see me walking to the other school building as they pick old boxes and cans to sell.

This is a photograph of street children taken from a bus. It’s not that clear. They were happy I took their pics. They were selling drinks in the streets.