"All parties are responsible. Do not simply hand over the responsibility of developing children`s character to schools and the government," Jokowi said.Bogor, West Java (ANTARA News) - All parties have the responsibility of building the character of children to ensure that they have Indonesian traits, according to President Joko Widodo.
"All parties are responsible. Do not simply hand over the responsibility of developing childrens character to schools and the government," Jokowi, as the president is better known, said after attending the peak event commemorating National Childrens Day at Bogor Palace on Tuesday.
On the occasion, he stated that results of the efforts employed to build the character of children take time to reflect in them.
"Building the character of children and instilling culture and values in them is important to break the cycle of violence against them, even though it requires a fairly long period of time," the president pointed out.
The head of state emphasized that character building was not the responsibility of the government and schools alone but of their family and public environment, as well.
"All parties should take up the responsibility of building the character and personality of Indonesian children," Jokowi reiterated.
In addition, Chairman of the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas PA) Arist Merdeka Sirait expressed hope that the government will support efforts to break the chain of violence against children.
"I hope the president provides moral support to the children in this nation, especially to break the chain of the rampant violence they are subjected to these days," Sirait remarked.
He revealed that 21 million children in Indonesia have been exposed to violence, of which around 58 percent are victims of sexual violence.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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