MINISTRY LAUNCHES PROGRAM TO RID JAKARTA OF STREET CHILDREN

Jakarta, March 5 (ANTARA) - The Social Affairs Ministry has launched a program to make Jakarta "street-children-free" by 2011 by setting up child care centers.

"The program's discussion stage has been implemented since early February. A workshop on the street children problem was held with the participation of various elements such as the government, the private sector, NGOs, and several existing child care centers," Febraldi, of the Social Affairs Ministry's Children Directorate, said in a "Focused Group Discussion" at the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) office here on Thursday.

The existing Children Social Welfare Service Center (PPKSA) located at Bambu Apus would be used as a model for future child care centers expected to be built by the regional government or the community, he said.

Secretary General of the National Commission for Child Protection Arist Merdeka Sirait said he was not sure that Jakarta could be free of street children by 2011.

"Don't set a target that in 2011 Jakarta will be free of street children if there are no preparations concerning the needed budget, political will and regional governments' regulations. There is a fear that the security approach is to be used to free Jakarta from street children," Sirait said.

Sharing Sirait's opinion, Jhony Simanjuntak of Komnas HAM and Susilo Adinegoro, chairman of the Grass Root Children Gallery Foundation, expressed their pessimism about the program's target.

"It's impossible to make Jakarta free from street children in 2011," Simanjutak said at his office.

Susilo Adinegoro said accommodating street children in child care centers or sending them back to their villages would not solve the problem, because there might be more street children in 2012.

However, Febraldi said the social affairs ministry and the other institutions would be consistent in implementing the program and do their utmost.

Meanwhile, data of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) showed that around 22 percent of 17 million Indonesian children live in the streets.