It is my hope that mental revolution will start within families that can play their part ..."Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Character education, or the teaching of virtues, should start at home where children can learn through positive examples and encouragement from their parents.
Although character education is imparted in schools, it is not always merely the education that parents want their children to receive since if virtues are not reinforced and modeled at home, they will not exhibit good character or positive virtues.
Children who fail to receive character education at home will lack basic virtues that can led to moral dilemmas in society.
Therefore, parents have to realize that character education, which encompasses honesty, trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring for others, and even citizenship, should begin at home as teachers cannot do it all alone.
Honesty and trustworthiness are the foundation on which character is built at home, but parents are often confronted with children who are not trustworthy.
From an early age, one is challenged to be a good citizen on a daily basis.
Within the family, children learn to work together and bond with each other as a single unit to address issues in their community and make a difference.
In light of this, the National Commission for Child Protection Chairman Arist Merdeka Sirait has stated that the values of mental revolution can be imparted by the family, which serves as the primary vehicle for the young generation in shaping the character of the nation.
"It is my hope that mental revolution will start within families that can play their part by instilling religious, social, and cultural values in order to shape the mentality, character, and behavior of children," Sirait remarked.
According to Sirait, character education in the family needs to be prioritized in order to create a golden generation that does not demonstrate negative behavior.
Sirait made the statement in connection with the increase in the number of cases of sexual violence and other crimes whose perpetrators are still classified as children or adolescents.
"Now, we see the fact that children and teenagers are involved in cases of rape and other sexual offenses, and this is already very alarming," Sirait affirmed.
Hence, this demonstrates that Indonesia is in a state of emergency with regard to sexual crimes or the equivalent of what has been called as child abuse emergency.
Therefore, the mental revolution movement, which is being echoed by the government, is expected to bring about a significant change in society.
For the national movement of mental revolution to yield results and to touch the root cause of the problem, the public must be encouraged to take the initiative in their homes.
Sexual violence against children in Indonesia has reached an alarming level and created an emergency situation that needs immediate handling and action.
Accordingly, the activists of the Womens Crisis Center (WCC) in Palembang, South Sumatra, has invited high school and university students to fight violence against women and sexual harassment.
"High school and college students must increase their awareness and intensify their role in the fight against sexual violence as they are vulnerable to such crimes," WCC Chairperson Yeni Roslaini Izi remarked in Palembang on Wednesday.
To increase their awareness regarding such crimes, the WCC this year seeks to promote campaigns themed "Stop Violence and Sexual Abuse" at schools and colleges in 17 districts and cities in South Sumatra Province.
As part of the campaigns, the students were encouraged to be more careful in their dealings with the opposite sex, as well as to foster mutual respect and to prioritize personal safety and well-being.
In addition, Culture and Education Minister Anies Baswedan has urged schools to set up a team to prevent violence against children.
"This team will conduct an early detection of any irregularities as part of the efforts to respond to the growing incidence of violence against children," the education minister stated.
Sexual deviance must be quickly detected to address and prevent sexual abuse among children, for crimes against children are brutal in nature.
Indeed, early childhood education at home and at school is very important as it can instill good values and develop a childs personality.
Family education plays an important role in molding a childs character. In this case, parents play an important role in developing good character traits in their children.
Womens Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Yohana Yembise had earlier stated that the increase in violence against children in Indonesia will pose a serious challenge to the existence of this nation in competing with other countries.
"The quality of Indonesian human resources is inseparable from the role of children, who constitute 34 percent of the total population," she remarked.
Yembise noted that the role of some 87 million children in Indonesia was entirely dependent on their protection and the fulfillment of their rights from the cradle to 18 years of age.
She reiterated that the increase in the number of child abuse cases still poses a serious problem for the optimal development of children in the country.
(Uu.O001/INE/KR-BSR)
Reporter: Otniel Tamindael
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
