REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, Marta Santos Pais, has commended Indonesia for its commitment to ending violence against children.

"This commitment confirms Indonesia's place as a global leader as implementation of the SDGs begins"," she said in a statement issued over the weekend after she completed a mission to Indonesia.

She congratulated Indonesia for adopting a National Strategy for the Elimination of Violence against Children and a National Action Plan on Child Protection which together provide a comprehensive framework to prevent and respond to incidents of violence.

The effective implementation of the National Strategy will be an important step to secure protection of children in all settings, including at school, at home and in the community, Pais said.

It will also be a crucial contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especial9ly target 16.2, which aims to end violence against children by 2030, she added.

"Indonesia's National Strategy recognizes the crucial role of sound data, and comprehensive legislation to prohibit all forms of violence and provide support to child victims, as well as the value of empowering children and supporting families in their caregiving role. These policies need now to be brought to all levels of society, leaving no child behind," Santos Pais stressed.

During her stay in Jakarta, she met Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Minister of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Yohana Yembise, and Education Minister Anies Baswedan to discuss efforts towards protecting children from all forms of violence.

The Government of Indonesia has placed violence against children as a priority concern in its policy agenda and is determined to make significant progress over the years to come, she said.

"If we allow violence to continue, it will destroy social and economic gains that took years and decades to build," she stated.

To achieve progress steady implementation efforts are needed, including strengthening coordination at all levels of the administration, consolidating data to capture the magnitude of violence in all settings, enhancing legislation to ban all violence, and widening awareness raising and social mobilization to overcome deeply rooted practices, attitudes and behaviour which condone violence against children.

SRSG Santos Pais welcomed the significant progress since her visit a year ago when she had urged Indonesia to be a lighthouse in the region and globally in shaping policies to end violence against children and ensuring their steady implementation.

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