Day: November 12, 2021

Indonesia is currently experiencing an alarming number of sexual violence cases in universities, Education, Culture, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Anwar Makarim has said.

“We are in an emergency situation of sexual violence in the university environment. You could say the situation is critical. Not only are we experiencing a COVID-19 pandemic, but also a sexual violence pandemic. Data from the National Commission on Violence Against Women shows that sexual violence occurs at all levels of education. As many as 27 percent of the complaints received occurred in higher education levels,” he informed at a virtual event originating from Jakarta on Friday.

In a survey conducted by the ministry, 77 percent of lecturers acknowledged sexual violence cases on campus. However, 63 percent of the lecturers said they did not report the cases they knew of to the campus.

Currently, Indonesia is experiencing the “iceberg phenomenon” in terms of sexual violence on campus, Makarim said.

Further digging into the issue would make it apparent that sexual violence is happening on all campuses, he added.

“The government needs to do (take some measures) to protect lecturers and students as well as education staff from sexual violence,” he said.

He highlighted that sexual violence is quite difficult to prove, but impactful, saying its effects on victims are long-lasting.

He cited an example of a student who experienced sexual violence on campus, tried to report it, but received no response, became depressed, and eventually quit the campus.

The minister emphasized that it is impossible for a campus to provide quality learning if the lecturers, students, and staff do not feel safe and comfortable. The impact of one event can be felt for a lifetime because it inflicts lifelong psychological damage, he observed.

“We already have several laws, but there is nothing at university (level). We have a child law, but it’s only (for those) under 18. There is a violence in household (PKDRT) law, but only for the households. We have a people trafficking law, but only to catch human-trafficking syndicates. So there is a void, because (there are) those who have not been protected who are over 18 years old, not yet or not married, and are not trapped in human-trafficking syndicates,” he elaborated.

Thus, it is necessary to have specific regulations to protect campus residents, he stressed.

He also outlined several limitations in the handling of sexual violence cases under the current Criminal Code. The criminal code does not recognize victims who are not covered by other regulations, it does not recognize online gender-based violence (KGBO), and only recognizes certain forms of rape and obscenity.

And yet, the academic community and education staff are prone to online gender-based violence, given their age bracket as active users of social media and lectures during the COVID-19 pandemic are mostly being conducted online, he added.

Source: Antara News

The kind of bond a woman shares with her father can influence her selection of a life partner, University of Indonesia Institute of Applied Psychologists’ child and family psychologist Irma Gustiana Andriani stated.

“It affects when a child chooses a partner (when she has grown up). However, the role and involvement of fathers in childhood are very impactful. This aspect will affect how the child sees and maps what a male figure is like,” Andriani S.Psi, M.Psi., Psi noted when contacted by ANTARA on Friday.

Furthermore, she explained that if a daughter shares a close bond with her father, she will tend to choose a life partner, who is relatively similar to him.

“If she is close to her father, she tends to choose a life partner, who is usually relatively more or less similar to her father’s character,” she expounded.

Andriani believes it will make marriage more optimistic, as a good family will definitely have a positive impact.

“Finally, she will decide to get married because she feels she has lived in a family with a role model, who has been warm all along. She wants her husband or her family to have the same warmth. It influences her while choosing a life partner,” she stated.

On Father’s Day, November 12, Andriani expressed optimism that all father figures, especially in Indonesia, can re-evaluate and reflect on themselves to be able to increase quality time to build closeness with their children.

“Hopefully, on this Father’s Day, fathers in Indonesia would return to self-reflection and assess themselves to improve the bonding time with their children,” she explained.

With good quality time, children can develop better social-emotional values, according to Andriani.

Source: Antara News

The most important factor for improving closeness between parents and children is their quality of interaction, University of Indonesia clinical psychologist Muthmainah Mufidah has said.

According to Mufidah, the quality of interaction does not depend on how often it happens, or whether parents are physically present.

When contacted by Antara on Friday, she said the key is to focus on listening to children, such as telling them how the day went.

“If you are busy, tell them that you are working and give them an illustration of what you are doing. That makes the child imagine. Parents can also trick their children to study beside them while working,” she added.

Another psychologist from the University of Indonesia, A. Kasandra Putranto, said that the trick to bonding with children is recognizing their character.

“Get to know the child’s character by often inviting them to discuss. Do activities or hobbies together, such as sports, culinary, and so on. Also, give gifts for them occasionally, ” Putranto added.

Child, adolescent, and family psychologist Rosdiana Setyaningrum gave similar advice. She said that communication patterns that align with a child’s character can build intimacy.

“We as parents must pay attention to our children’s traits, teach them the way, and the right time to talk. Give the choice of words that they can say,” Setyaningrum elaborated.

Furthermore, she also said that parenting must be in keeping with children’s age. Thus, children will feel appreciated by parents, she added.

It is important to suit the parenting style to the children’s age, she said. For example, when teaching children how to be independent and make their own choices, parents must give them the opportunity to have options, develop on their own, she expounded.

“The children will feel appreciated, making them closer,” she added.

Source: Antara News

Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Minister Nadiem Anwar Makarim has emphasized that his ministry has never supported the practice of free love or fornication.

The minister made the statement in response to allegations by several parties that the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Regulation (Permendikbudristek) Number 30 of 2021 on Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence in Higher Education supports free love or fornication.

“We reemphasize that the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology has never supported free love or fornication. The accusation of supporting free love occurs because the phrases (in the regulation) are being taken out of context,” he explained at a virtual event here on Friday.

One of the goals of the regulation is to ensure safe and comfortable education for academic communities, he said.

“The focus of the Permendikbudristek is to counter the sexual violence pandemic on campus,” he added.

The preparation of the Permendikbudristek on Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence was among the longest because it took 1.5 years and more than 20 discussion sessions, public tests, harmonization that involved many parties, the minister said.

The regulation is aimed at fulfilling the rights of safety in education for everyone, he said. Furthermore, the Permendikbudristek aims to tackle sexual violence with a constitutional and sustainable approach, he informed. This is because the substance of the regulation provides legal certainty for higher education leaders to take firm action, he added.

According to Makarim, the issuance of the Permendikbudristek is needed since currently, there is no clear legal umbrella for cases of sexual violence on campus. Therefore, university leaders face difficulties in taking firm action, he said.

To tackle sexual violence, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology has urged universities to prepare a special task force for the Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence in the near future.

Source: Antara News