Jakarta – The government of President Abdurrahman Wahid has expressed concern over the increasing number of abortions in Indonesia, having noted that at least 2.3 million women resorted to terminating their pregnancies last year.

"The number of abortions in the country is tending to increase," the Antara national news agency quoted Women's Empowerment Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa as saying. She blamed casual sex among young people, rather than rape, for the upward trend. "Teenagers who practise free sex and rape victims will resort to abortion to avoid having a baby," she said.

Referring to a survey, she said that 60 per cent of teenage girls in Surabaya, East Java, have lost their virginity and that in big cities like Jakarta, abortions ranged in price from 500,000 rupiah (S$106) to 2 million rupiah. Village-price charges by "backyard abortionists" start at about 100,000 rupiah, but the level of safety and hygiene is often negligible.

According to the Indonesian Observer newspaper, the minister also blamed the prolonged economic crisis for prompting an increasing number of children to become sex workers. Citing an example, she said that over the past two years, the number of child sex workers in Karimun, a resort island off mainland Riau, had increased by 12 per cent annually.

Ms Khofifah urged all relevant groups and organisations to take preventive measures to save children from sexual exploitation. "We are preparing a draft law on the protection of children," she said, stressing that the empowerment of women is not merely the government's responsibility. "Parents should also actively monitor the behaviour of their teenage daughters."