Develop the Village and Give Access to Education

KOMPAS/RYAN RINALDY

Three teenaged girls who were not recruited as migrant workers gather on 9 July 2019 during Kompas’ visit to their village in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara. The young women were among seven migrant worker applicants who were discovered with immigration documents that did not match their civil registration documents at the Kupang branch of PT Bukit Mayak Asri.

The development of rural infrastructure and access to education are the only ways to combat child trafficking in Indonesia.

KUPANG, KOMPAS— Poverty and a low level of education have caused young people and children in Timor Tengah Selatan regency, East Nusa Tenggara, and several districts in Indramayu regency, West Java, to be easily tempted by promises of decent jobs and big salaries for work overseas or outside their regions.

An investigative report conducted by Kompas from July 3 to 27 found that children in both areas were often trafficked as illegal migrant workers (TKI) or for prostitution. Some ended up losing their lives.

In Timor Tengah Selatan regency, residents generally work as farmers, but the land in their area is very dry and not productive. The farming activities rely on rainwater. In Tuppan village, Batu Putih subdistrict, although the majority of the people are farmers, irrigation is not available to support their farming activities. The existing wells are only enough to fulfill their daily needs.

Residents mostly have difficulty fulfilling their daily needs. Corn and sweet potatoes, which are the mainstays to meet food needs, cannot grow during the dry season.

According to Benedikta Klau (34), the mother of two children and former migrant worker from Tuppan village, during the dry season, life becomes more difficult. "During the dry season, there’s no more corn," she said.

Because the agricultural areas are mostly unproductive, Benedikta said she had to sell firewood to meet her daily needs. She also worked to deliver water for other villagers. She earns between Rp 10,000 and Rp 20,000 a day for one of her jobs.

Another local resident, Dewi Maubanu, 30, said that during the dry season, her family only consumed corn or rice, without side dishes. As there were no vegetables that can grow during the dry season, they ate only rice, which was sometimes mixed with hot water.

"Just eating rice, mixed with water," she said. It was from Tuppan village that Yufrinda Selan came from. Yufrinda was a victim of human trafficking – she died in Malaysia in 2016. Yufrinda quit school when she was in year one of SMK vocational school in Batu Putih subdistrict.

KOMPAS/RYAN RINALDY

Four villagers walk home after attending church services on 7 July 2019 in Meusin village of Boking district, Timor Tengah Selatan regency, East Nusa Tenggara. The lack of economic activity in the village has prompted many locals to seek employment abroad as migrant workers.

Yuliana, 46, Yufrinda\'s mom, said her daughter had to pay transportation costs of Rp 20,000 every day.

The distance from their home to school is more than 10 kilometers. Yufrinda\'s father, who worked as a construction worker, did not have regular income. A similar situation was also found in Meusin village, Boking district, South Central Timor.

Residents also rely on agriculture, but the farming facilities are very limited. There are no agricultural products that can be sold to other regions. The access roads to the village of Meusin are severely damaged.

The head of Meusin village, Paulus Silla, said that this year village funds were used to build inter-village roads. For agriculture, the village was still proposing a budget to establish pipe irrigation systems to save water.

A system of drip irrigation was chosen because of the limited water supply. "Water is really needed for agriculture. There are no facilities to supply water to our farms. However, residents also need road access so we built the road first," he said.

Meusin village is where two young women who became victims of child trafficking, Desi Payon, 17, and Ori Kamlasi, hailed from.

Desi was sent illegally to Malaysia in 2018 and her fate and whereabouts are still unknown. Ori was dispatched to Malaysia at the age of 14 in 2012 and her whereabouts are also not known.

Rev. Emmy Sahertian, an anti-trafficking activist in NTT, revealed that the root of the problem of human trafficking was poverty, which occurred because the farming land in the area was not fertile due to the lack of water supply.

Emmy said that infrastructure development, such as of a reservoir or pond, could be the solution to resolving the issue of poverty in the village. Moreover, residents live in hills far from water sources, making the need for such sources even more urgent.

Target of recruitment

Poverty and difficult access to education has caused residents in Bongas subdistrict, Indramayu, West Java, to become a target of recruitment for prostitution in big cities since 1995.

Before the anti-trafficking movement that was initiated by the Kusuma Bongas Foundation grew, the availability of schools in this subdistrict was minimal. The chairperson of the Kusuma Bongas Foundation Syarifudin said, until 2006, there were 28 primary schools in Bongas district. However, there was only one junior high school.

"Children, after they dropped out and grew up, needed activities such as work. As a result, they were easily tempted to take on offers for jobs such as entertainers," said Syarifudin.

Education is used as a weapon by the Kusuma Bongas Foundation to fight human trafficking in persons. In 2006, according to Syarifudin, his organization established the Kusuma Bongas Open junior high school. The establishment of schools encourages the growth of other schools.

KOMPAS/SATRIO PANGARSO WISANGGENI

Melianus Payon, a resident of Meusin village, Timor Tengah Selatan regency, East Nusa Tenggara, sits in front of his house on a Saturday evening in early July (7/7/2019). Melianus\' daughter, identified only as DP, disappeared after being sent to Malaysia when she was a child.

As of today, there are 30 elementary schools, 11 junior high schools, two senior high schools and seven vocational schools in Bongas. "Through education, counseling on the dangers of human trafficking can work more effectively. From an early age, we teach children in our village to be aware of the human trafficking carried out through the recruitment of migrant workers," he said. (MDN/ADY/SPW)