For over 30 minutes, Rismaharini persuaded NA to move to rehabilitation that would also help in providing education and supporting her development.
"I offered her to undergo rehabilitation in Kupang since this area did not have any," the minister noted in a written statement received here, Thursday.
At the Ende police station, Rismaharini pointed out that there were several children with similar cases undergoing social rehabilitation at the Efata Center in Kupang. Apart from psychological recovery, the facility also provides education and helps to develop the children's interests.
"Thank God, NA agreed to go to Kupang. Later, we will take her there," the minister stated.
Rismaharini also communicated with law enforcement officials to give maximum punishment to the perpetrators of social violence.
"Earlier, I spoke with the Police Chief and the Chief of the Attorney General regarding the maximum sentence for perpetrators because some of them have family relations with the victims," she noted.
As was earlier known, the perpetrator of sexual violence against NA was her cousin, who lived with her and another family member. Law Number 17 of 2016 Juncto Law Number 35 of 2014 Juncto Law Number 23 of 2002 concerning Child Protection states that perpetrators of sexual violence against children can be sentenced to a maximum of 15 years.
Related news: Govt to facilitate rehabilitation of 305 child sexual abuse victims
However, if the act is committed by parents, guardians, people who have family relations, caregivers, educators, educational staff, and officials handling the child or is carried out by more than one person jointly, then the penalty is increased by one-third from the original sentence.
Rismaharini explained that cases of sexual violence were the main focus of her ministry. Throughout 2022, the Ministry of Social Affairs, through social assistance in the regions, has handled at least 3,346 child victims of sexual violence.
This figure does not include the 254 cases that were responded by media monitoring that went viral in the mass media.
Of the 254 child victims, 14 were disabled children, she added.
The Ministry of Social Affairs, through media monitoring, scans news about social problems occurring in Indonesia. In 2022, the ministry responded to 6,627 cases, of which 741 cases involved children with various problems.
"This visit was also carried out from the result of our media monitoring. Every day, I always read the monitoring result from our public relations bureau regarding media and social media about various problems. The problems could be sickness and including cases of rape," she stated.
She noted that the ministry is responsible for the social rehabilitation process for children as victims of physical, psychological, and sexual violence. If the community finds cases of violence against children, then they can report this to number 021-171 or contact the nearest social service.
Related news: Ministry calls to accord priority to sexual violence victims' recovery
Related news: KPAI received reports largely of sexual crimes in 2022: Chairperson
Translator: Devi Nindy Sari R, Resinta S
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
