Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Indonesia's National Council for Catholic Education has published a book on the prevention and handling of sexual abuse in response to Pope Francis' commitment to tackling an issue that has tarnished the Church's reputation in recent years.

The book was launched on Dec. 10 in an online event attended by priests, nuns, brothers, principals and teachers at Catholic schools as well as government officials.

The 146-page book, drawn up in collaboration with the National Commission on Violence Against Women, urges that such cases be reported to the police and sets out sanctions against perpetrators according to the type of offense.

Franciscan Father Vinsensius Darmin Mbula, the council chairman, said the guidelines adhere to Pope Francis' commitment to addressing sexual abuse within the Church.

He pointed to his establishment of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Children in 2013.

"The pope said the commission's establishment was based on the experience of being moved by the testimonies of sexual abuse victims. That means he wants all of us as part of the Church to take steps to end this practice," he said.

In fact, the impact of sexual abuse is very serious and proving it is the most difficult compared to other types of violence

He admitted such abuses have occurred in Indonesia's Catholic schools but were often not handled properly and efforts were made to cover them up.

"One of the triggers is the absence of guidelines that can be used as a reference for schools in providing proper handling. In fact, the impact of sexual abuse is very serious and proving it is the most difficult compared to other types of violence," he said.

"With these guidelines, we hope that no one will be ignored, no more perpetrators will be left free."

Father Mbula said Catholic schools can tailor the guidelines according to their respective social and cultural contexts.

Catharina Muliana, inspector-general at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, called the guidelines an important breakthrough and in line with the ministry's commitment to eradicating sexual abuse from Indonesia's schools, along with intolerance and bullying.

"It is impossible to have great children if they grow up in an abusive environment," she said.

Muliana, a Catholic, said church schools need to implement the law of love, which not only means siding with victims but also taking strict action against perpetrators.

Maria Ulfah Anshor from the National Commission on Violence Against Women said the council was the first religious institution to issue such guidelines. "This proves that Catholics consider this a serious problem for us all," she said.

According to the commission, there were 3,602 reported cases of violence committed against women in 2020, of which 58 percent were sexual abuse. Of that amount, 4.2 percent occurred in educational institutions.

Meanwhile, Retno Listyarti, commissioner of the Indonesian Child Protection Commission, said that of the complaints they have received since 2018, perpetrators of sexual abuse in primary and secondary schools were teachers (88 percent) and school principals (22 percent).

The modus operandi, she said, was that victims were invited to watch porn videos, threatened with bad grades, given money, offered gifts such as clothes or mobile phones and promised marriage.

Source: https://www.ucanews.com/news/educators-in-indonesia-issue-anti-sex-abuse-rule-book/95341