686 Child Rights Violations Recorded In First Semester

Jakarta, Oct 16 (ANTARA) - The National Commission on Child Protection (Komnas PA) has recorded 686 cases of child rights violation in the first semester this year. The figure roughly translates into 100 public complaints of child rights violation recorded every month, the commission said in a press statement here on Tuesday. Komnas PA predicted that the number would rise in the second semester while the violations would be more complex and varied. It said that the violations generally occurred in communities close to children, such as schools, families, educational institutes and social milieu. The perpetrators include parents, uncles, teachers, step-fathers or mothers who are supposed to protect the children. Komnas PA, meanwhile, recorded 139 cases of school student brawls in the same period, which is up compared to 128 cases recorded in the same period last year. The press statement informed that the fights have killed 12 students and seriously wounded others. With regard to cases of children versus the law (ABDH) in the first semester this year, Komnas PA has recorded 759 cases involving boys 29 cases have featured girls. It said that most ABDH cases are related to thefts, totalling 312, violence (128), knife-wielding fights (119), narcotic drugs (79), gambling (37), sexual abuse (24), murders (6) and abduction (2). 39 reports of missing children have also been recorded in the same period. Most perpetrators in abduction cases are family members or persons close to the victims, according to the report. The commission received 42 reports of child abandonment in the same period, with 23 boys and 19 girls being abandoned. It said that most cases of abandonment involve close associates such as mothers and fathers, numbering 40 and 33, respectively. In the same period, Komnas PA also received 20 reports suicide by children aged between 13 and 17. Most of them came from low-income families. It said that nine children killed themselves by hanging, eight by use of sharp weapons, two by jumping off high-rise buildings and one by consuming poison.