CRPD
Rights Tracker
Reports
(Art. 7) Children with disabilities
(Art. 7) Children with disabilities
List of Issue
Please provide information on the measures taken to ensure the rights of children with disabilities and the specific measures taken:
To implement Regulation No. 4 of the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection of 2017 to effectively address human rights violations against children with disabilities;
To prohibit corporal punishment in alternative care and day-care settings;
To provide appropriate care for the physical and psychological support of children with disabilities and support for parents of children with disabilities, including financial support and services that help parents meet their parental responsibilities, in the community, and to ensure that children with disabilities, including children with intellectual or psychosocial disabilities, are not left abandoned, separated from their family or forced to work as beggars;
To harmonize terminology with the Convention, eliminating the use of
terminology such as “children with special needs” when referring to children with disabilities, and to combat negative stereotypes and stigma against children with disabilities and their consequential seclusion and, at times, confinement;
To ensure the full and effective participation of children with disabilities, through their representative organizations, in the process of planning, implementing and monitoring legislation that affects them across the State party and local governments, with appropriate support and adequate protection of their rights.
Alternative Reports
DPOs Coalition Report (OHANA)
Special guarantee of protection for children with disabilities is contained in Law 8/2016. Special protection for children with disabilities is also included in Article 8 of Law No. 23 of 2002 on Child Protection. This is also reinforced in the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Regulation No. 4 of 2017 concerning Special Protection for Children with Disabilities. Although regulations have been established, to date, as also acknowledged by the Indonesian Government, the protection of children with disabilities remains a major problem in Indonesia.
Based on assistance data provided by WKCP, the main problem in handling children with CP (Cerebral Palsy) is related to diagnosis delays, even for several years, resulting in delayed and worsening treatment. This is also linked to the incorrect diagnostic and handling process for these children, due to inadequate equipment and resources. For example, the case of AL, a child with CP, had experienced anomalies in growth and development since the age of 1 month, namely frequent startling which was actually part of seizures. However, doctors always stated that it was merely primitive reflexes still present in infants. AL's parents only received the correct diagnosis at age 2 and only considered appropriate handling after that, by which time the child's golden age had passed. Similar issues also occur with intellectual disabilities.
In cases of deafness, deaf children should start with their mother tongue using sign language, but in practice, deaf children very rarely receive sign language instruction from their mother or family. This is also related to the ability, knowledge, and awareness of the parents. Deaf children are still not guaranteed the right to language, are pressured to learn oral communication, while speech therapists are minimal. This can be seen from the results of a survey by Psychiatrist Dr. Mario in 2019, which stated that almost 90% of deaf people experience symptoms of depression.
In terms of public services, given the communication limitations of deaf children, when examined/identified for health by a doctor, they are often not handled directly by a specialist doctor, the diagnosis is not comprehensive, and they are given medication for a long period of time. Meanwhile, these children and parents also do not know the purpose of the medication.
Another issue that is also a problem is related to the exploitation of children with disabilities carried out by family or the community, such as becoming beggars on the streets. Intervention by local governments is usually only carried out to regulate street children, but not with a comprehensive approach to handle children with disabilities who are victims of exploitation.
Proposed List of Issues:
What efforts are being made by the Government of Indonesia to guarantee the rights of children with disabilities? Can the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Regulation No. 4 of 2017 be effective in addressing the violations of the rights of children with disabilities?
What are the Indonesian government's policies to ensure the prevention of children with disabilities from acquiring multiple disabilities? Are health services, therapy, physiotherapy, and so on adequate down to the village level?
Response List of Issue (Coalition/OHANA)
One region that was the monitoring area for this report stated that government staff or officials, especially those in the Division of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection at DKP3A (Office of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection), were unaware of the existence of Ministerial Regulation (Permen) PPA No. 4/2017 as stated in the Committee's LoI. The Agency views that there has not been massive socialization and implementation of the said Ministerial Regulation in their area.
Special service centers for children with disabilities
Regional autonomy causes services to revert to the regions, and each region has different policies. Meanwhile, the Central Government has not explicitly clarified the direction and program for the protection of children with disabilities.
In the context of children with disabilities, several challenges remain, including the continuing lack of specialized service centers for children with disabilities, such as specialized daycare for children with disabilities. In DKI Jakarta, every large Mother and Child hospital has a Child Growth and Development Unit that provides habilitation and rehabilitation services for children. However, these services are usually fee-based (paid). The main problem is that parents do not have enough information and access on where to take their child and receive maximum service, compounded by parental concerns about the high costs involved. In practice, services for children with disabilities are often equated with services for non-disabled children. As a result, children with disabilities do not receive what they should according to their diverse disability needs.
In East Kalimantan, at least 2 institutions play a role in serving children with disabilities: Forum Peduli Anak Berkebutuhan Khusus (FPAB - Forum for Concerned with Children with Special Needs) and PLA (Pusat Layanan Autis - Autism Service Center), both under the East Kalimantan Provincial Government. FPAB is an institution that provides educational services to parents and teachers on how to assist children with special needs. During the Covid-19 pandemic, this activity was stopped due to budget cuts. Meanwhile, PLA, an institution under the East Kalimantan Provincial Education Agency, has fairly good equipment from Central Government assistance. It is currently still operating, targeting especially those who are economically disadvantaged.
In Riau, a number of programs are carried out by the Local Government, including providing activity daily living training for mothers who have children with disabilities. Riau also has a Special Service Center (PLA) that is provided free of charge using the regional budget. However, according to DPOs, complicated bureaucracy makes it difficult for parents or children with disabilities to access these services.
In Yogyakarta, with the note that its implementation needs to be made more effective and enhanced, there are child-friendly villages that include indicators of special protection. PATBM (Community-Based Integrated Child Protection), Child-Friendly Community Health Centers (Puskesmas), Child-Friendly Islamic boarding schools (pesantren), Inclusive Cities and Sub-districts, and the Yogyakarta City Children's Forum. Meanwhile, a Disability Service Unit exists at the Provincial level which is still limited to education-related services, covering consultation and assessment.
The second factor that is a challenge and difficulty for parents is the lack of information centers created or managed by the government for parents of children with disabilities. This leads to a number of problems for children with diverse disabilities. Deaf children, for example, the lack of understanding of the children's situation and condition among family, the environment, and educators causes them to have difficulty communicating from an early age. Deaf children often still do not receive instruction in their mother tongue (natural sign language), making communication difficult when they grow up. This communication difficulty is often interpreted by the environment (stigma) that the deaf child is temperamental, even though the psychological impact is due to communication difficulties. Unfortunately, this has also not been taken seriously, either medically or psychologically by the Government.
The lack of information related to children with intellectual disabilities is also an obstacle for parents to ensure the growth and development of children with intellectual disabilities. This causes parents to be entirely burdened with seeking information themselves, learning, and providing understanding to their children. This situation leads parents to delay providing treatment to their children in the early years, resulting in many deaf children not receiving good education. According to GERKATIN's monitoring, many deaf children aged 9 - 13 years do not know the names of items/objects, such as a table, hat, etc., let alone read or write. This is further exacerbated by the lack of provision of deaf disability teachers or teachers who can use sign language.
The lack of information and dissemination also causes the public to still treat children with disabilities with old approaches that violate and restrict the rights of children with disabilities. In Maluku, for example, 2 women with disabilities who are currently disability rights activists in a disability organization (HWDI) were originally 2 women who were confined at home and not allowed to socialize.
Children with intellectual disabilities also still experience stigma and discrimination. To this day, according to the accounts of parents of children with Down syndrome, children or people with intellectual disabilities (especially with Down syndrome) are still heavily stigmatized as children/people who cannot be educated in general schools, are retarded, idiotic, or other discriminatory labels. Even in inclusive schools, this group is always rejected from entering school on the grounds that their IQ does not meet the target.
The third obstacle related to children with disabilities is the limited access to early detection programs for the public. In Bandung Regency, West Java, there is an early detection program for persons with disabilities through the Mobile Social Service Unit of the Social Agency, but it is not yet widespread due to budget limitations. In East Kalimantan, this program is implemented by the Health Agency and provided by health service centers. In Riau, the Riau regional hospital provides early detection services, but at a high cost, while community programs are not carried out routinely. In Yogyakarta City, Yogyakarta Province, the Early Detection program is provided through the Stimulation, Detection, and Early Intervention of Growth and Development (BKB PAUD SDIDTK) program at the Integrated Health Post (Posyandu).
Social Assistance for Children with Disabilities
The lack of comprehensive data on children with disabilities that is disaggregated, by name by address, is an obstacle to providing maximum services to these children, including social assistance. In West Java, for example, although the Local Government knows the responsibility for handling children with mental disabilities lies with the Province or Regency/City, there is no practice or program for the protection of children with mental disabilities. The Provincial Social Agency does not have a specific program for children with mental or intellectual disabilities, usually leaving them to private institutions.
In East Kalimantan, there are some persons with disabilities who receive assistance from ASPDB/KIS/KIP and PKH, although the number is not very large. Specifically for ASPDB assistance, the number of recipients has decreased by about 30% in recent years, as has the nominal amount of assistance. In Riau, although some persons with disabilities receive the assistance, most persons with disabilities do not receive KPS/KJS or other assistance programs. The lack of disaggregated data, criteria for assistance recipients, and the absence of a national policy regarding specific policies for persons with disabilities as aid recipients mean that social assistance is not comprehensive.
Proposed Recommendation
What Indonesia needs is a Health Information Center where parents can access free information services on what they should do when a newborn child is found to have a disability. The Information Center is expected to later become a data center, a social assistance service center for those in need, and also a referral center if the child requires further action. Hospitals, clinics, and midwives assisting in the child's birth must be able to refer parents to the Disability Information Center to obtain complete information so that the child's growth and development can be optimal.
Response List of Issue (HWDI)
The central and regional governments have the responsibility to encourage the implementation of Article 27 of Law No. 8/2016 by conducting socialization and cross-sector coordination. In addition, Article 42 of Law No. 8/2016 also requires every higher education provider to facilitate the formation of a disability service unit to provide socialization on disability understanding and the inclusive education system to educators, education personnel, and students. Rising awareness is also promoted in the National Human Rights Action Plan (RANHAM) 2015 – 2019, the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2014-2019, and a number of other programs at the national level.
Nevertheless, the increase in awareness and socialization of existing regulations has not been optimal, and in the field, there are no guidelines or minimum service standards accompanied by regular monitoring and evaluation from the central and regional governments. The Minimum Service Standards issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, which serve as regional guidelines for planning and budgeting, also do not comprehensively include the aspect of disability awareness.
The campaign and socialization programs created also have not focused on women with disabilities. This results in a low understanding among state and government officials regarding the rights of persons with disabilities, both in the aspect of fulfilling their rights and in protection from violence or exploitation. For example, it is very difficult to obtain a sign language interpreter for women with disabilities dealing with public services, including in the law enforcement process.
Proposed List of Issues
In the official report of the Indonesian government to the CRPD Committee, it is mentioned that the Ministry of Social Affairs conducts socialization through discussions, seminars, workshops, and training for private companies to encourage the absorption of disabled workers. What are the sustainable programs and how does the Ministry of Social Affairs coordinate with relevant ministries such as the Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Transportation, and the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises to increase awareness of disability rights and inclusive education in the private sector?
What are the Indonesian Government's efforts to ensure that every Ministry, Institution, and all Regional Governments at the provincial and regency/city levels have a women with disabilities perspective?
Committee Recommendations
Recalling the joint statement of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on the rights of children with disabilities (2022), the Committee recommends that the State party establish policies, mechanisms and processes to facilitate the effective participation of children with disabilities in children’s forums and in decision-making processes to ensure they can freely express their views on all matters affecting them on an equal basis with other children.
ⓘ Indicators
Facilitate the effective participation of children with disabilities in children's forums