By: Ahmad Hadid
Population Control Service, Family Planning, Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (Dinas Pengendalian Penduduk Keluarga Berencana Pemberdayaan Perempuan dan Perlindungan Anak; DPPKBP3A) along with the Ministry of Religious Affairs of Cirebon Regency, Universitas Muhammadiyah Cirebon (UMC), and Umah Ramah signed an MoU on Cooperation and Implementation of Action to Change in the program to reduce child marriage rates through cross-sector coordination and an integrated reporting system to stop child marriage (Koin S3) in the Cirebon Regency DPPKBP3A Hall, on October 18, 2023.
The MoU is a collaboration related to coordination and reporting between sectors regarding works on preventing child marriage carried out by various State Institutions, Universities and NGOs in Cirebon district to be more integrated.
Eni Suhaeni (the Head of DPPPKBP3A) in her speech said that all parties concerned, including Umah Ramah, UMC and the Ministry of Religious Affairs, had carried out works on preventing child marriage. Her party has also tried to carry out works on child marriage prevention by forming 40 UPTs (Technical Implementation Units) consisting of P5A, TPD, Moneka, Teladan, PLKB.
This prevention works needs to be combined with cross-sector coordination and an integrated reporting system to create synergy as a joint movement to prevent child marriage in the Cirebon Regency.
Saniri, the Head of the Women and Child Protection Division (Kabid PPA) also explained that the signing of this MOU was also a derivative of the Regent’s Decree Number 12 of 2021, concerning the prevention of child marriage.
Turisih Widyowati (the Executive Director of Umah Ramah) in her speech, said that collaborative works to prevent child marriage must be carried out. For the past four years, Umah Ramah has carried out research and strengthened related literacy as a foundation for carrying out activities to prevent sexual violence against women and children.
Not long ago, she collaborated with Saniri, the Head of the Women and Child Protection Division (Kabid PPA) to conduct outreach on the prevention of child marriage at the Kempek Islamic Boarding School. Umah Ramah has also collaborated with the Ministry of Education and Culture, Research and Technology to provide outreach on the prevention of sexual violence against children in Islamic boarding schools and campuses in Bekasi.
For her, works on child marriage prevention is humanitarian work that must be carried out continuously together.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs also handles the prevention of child marriage. Saefudin Jazuli, PLT., the Head of the Ministry of Religious Affairs office of Cirebon Regency, said that cases of child marriage are still high to this day, even at the national level. In Cirebon Regency, more than three hundred marriage dispensations have occurred per day. For him, cooperation in coordination and integrated reporting is beneficial for measuring the extent of the efforts that have been made.
Muhammadiyah University of Cirebon is also all-ready to carry out work to prevent child marriage. Elya Kusuma Dewi said that for the past two years the Real-Work Lecture (Kuliah Kerja Nyata; KKN) program has raised the theme of preventing child marriage, this was done as a concrete manifestation of the socialization movement to stop child marriage. She is also waiting for follow-up efforts that will be carried out after the signing of the MoU.
This event was attended by Hj. Eni Suhaeni, SKM, M.Kes as the Head of the DPPKBP3A Cirebon Regency, Hj. Saniri, S.Si., Apt., M.H. as the Head of the Women and Children Protection (PPA) PPKBP3A Cirebon Regency, H. Saefudin Jazuli, S.H., M.H. PLT. as the Head of the Ministry of Religious Affairs office of Cirebon Regency, Dr. Elya Kusuma Dewi, S.H., M.H. as the Dean of the Faculty of Law, Muhammadiyah University of Cirebon (UMC), Turisih Widiyowati, M.Pd. as the Executive Director of Umah Ramah, as well as sub-coordinators of young expert social counselors and staff in the field of women and child protection and members of the work team from various related institutions. []
This article was translated by Napol Riel.