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Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Second Victim Comes Forward in JIS Sex Abuse Scandal

Jakarta Globe, Markus Junianto Sihaloho & Bayu Marhaenjati, Apr 23, 2014

A second rape victim has come forward in the scandal gripping the
Jakarta International School. (JG Photo/ Yudhi Sukma Wijaya)

Jakarta. The Indonesian Commission for Child Protection announced another 6-year-old boy has stepped forward to report that he, too, had suffered from sexual abuse at the hands of Jakarta International School’s janitorial staff.

Erlinda, the secretary of the commission known as the KPAI, claimed on Wednesday that teachers and management of the international school, commonly referred to as JIS, had known about the incident but made attempts to prevent details from coming to light.

She said the boy had described his assailants, one of whom is believed to be one of the two suspects currently in police custody.

“He doesn’t know [their names]. He only referred to them as ‘the big boys,’ or ‘the blue,’” Erlinda said, referring to the janitors’ uniform.

The boy is in the same class as the first victim, whose rape case triggered a firestorm of legal and media scrutiny on one of Jakarta’s most expensive private schools.

Erlinda said the incident occurred in February and mirrored the other case, with the alleged rape occurring in the school bathroom, beyond the coverage of the school’s closed-circuit television cameras.

The KPAI vowed to protect the boy even though JIS had provided the services of their psychologist.

“We will take over. The boy will be given therapy to cope with the traumatizing memories,” she said.

She called on police to collect blood and DNA samples from all JIS employees.

Meanwhile, Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr Rikwanto said the Jakarta Police’s Women’s and Children Unit is seeking to charge the school for negligence that led to the sexual assault of its students.

“It will be developed into [a case of] negligence,” Rikwanto said, adding that investigators would question teachers, student councilors and the school’s principal.

“We will summon members of the teaching staff as well as their principal to collect details on their teaching methodology, and how they watch over their students, because such an unspeakable act should not have been allowed to occurred within the school compound,” Rikwanto said.

The police spokesman said the teachers should have been aware of any behavioral changes in their students as they were the ones the children were closest to.

Furthermore, he said, it was the teachers’ responsibility to approach a child if she displayed any signs of fear or discomfort.

“It’s like this: a class consists of 16 students. The teacher should keep track of each student under his or her care. For instance, when a student asks for permission to go to the rest room, or when they want to eat, and so on,” Rikwanto said.

“It’s easy to detect when a child has experienced extraordinary physical and psychological changes,” he added.

The Education Ministry has ordered the JIS kindergarten campus closed in the wake of the scandal, citing its lack of an operating permit, while the immigration department says it will review the work permits of the foreign staff employed there.


Indonesian mothers protest against child sexual abuse in Banda Aceh, following
 incidents of child sexual abuse in the Aceh province and in the capital, Jakarta.
(AFP Photo/Chaideer Mahyuddin)


William James Vahey in 2013, left, and 2004. The teacher, 64,
 killed himself after confessing to drugging and molesting
children while on field trips. Photograph: AP


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