Questions/Answers

SAKERA JEMPOL Initiative is an comprehensive effort to empower women and villagers to actively report the actions of violence against women and children (VAWC) to the authorized agencies in District of Pasuruan of East Java, Indonesia. To empower them, the initiative has took several strategic actions such as educate women and villagers about domestic violence, conduct social campaign on reducing VAWC for youth and villagers, develop phone hotline to quick report the case of VAWC, and assist the victims of VAWC to recover their trauma and legal processes. The initiative has three main aims. The first aim is to reduce the rate of VAWC. Data from the National Commission on Eradicating Violence against Women shows that 259,150 cases of VAW were recorded in 2016, while the Indonesian Child Protection Commission recorded 970 cases of violence against children in 2014, 473 in 2015, and 313 in Jan-Oct 2016. In Pasuruan District, data from the District Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children (P2TP2A) shows that 75 cases were recorded in 2014 and 68 in 2015. Through this initiative, over three years, Pasuruan reduced this number to just 21 cases in January to December 2018. The second aim is to speed up the response time to reports of VAWC. Before the initiative, victims of violence were reluctant to report because the process was long and complicated. Now they can complete the process within one day. The third aim is to holistically support victims of violence. Previously, victims did not receive sufficient legal, psychological, or social support. This initiative ensures that they have continuing support until they have adapted to their new environment, and for women, gained new skills to help them become economically independent.

This initiative fits well with category 5: promoting gender-responsive public services to achieve the SDGs. Gender inequality in Indonesia, including in Pasuruan District, is closely linked to VAWC. Victims of violence rarely report, and even hide the occurrence of violence, because they are scared and do not know to where they can report. This means that the cycle of violence never ends, and support is never fully provided. This initiative provides fast access to violence reporting services through ‘key informants’, fast handling of cases, and continuing rehabilitation for victims.

This initiative aims to improve public services and end VAWC in line with SDG 5: Gender equality and women's empowerment. More specific, this initiative supports the achievement of target number 5.1 (End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere); target number 5.2 (Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation); 5.3 (Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation). This is done so through providing access to the community, especially ‘key informants’, to take active roles in reporting violence in their neighbourhood through complaint cards and fast handling of cases at community health centres and hospitals, including the involvement of police and social affairs. Key informant here refers to local citizen who has been trained to assist victims of VAWC to report their case to the designed authorities at local level. SDG 5.2 shows that fast responses to reports of violence is crucial, as it prevents violence from worsening.

Socially, this initiative is sustainable as VAWC is an always-present phenomena in society, especially in Pasuruan District of Indonesia where equal opportunity between men and women is still in early stage. This is why, women and girls are benefited directly from this initiative and support it to be implemented widely across the districts. Economically, this initiative has empowered women and girls to be more active in society. It means that they are no longer inferior in social interaction with men and boys, so they are capable to support their own life.

This initiative has successfully addressed a significant shortfall in public service through two strategies: 1. Simplifying the procedure to report VAWC case by utilizing social media, WhatsApp group, and online application used by the Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children (P2TP2A) at village, sub-district, and district level. The use of all these channels have given ample opportunity for villagers and the victim itself to immediately report the VAWC to the Center. Thus, the response time of the Center has increased significantly and the quick actions can be delivered to protect the victims of VAWC. 2. This initiative is innovative because it uses key informants to report VAWC, meaning that victims are not left alone to report. Before this initiative, victims had to report incidences of violence to law enforcement by themselves and undergo a physical examination at a hospital before a statement would be recorded. This initiative innovatively uses community figures as key informants – 365 community health workers (one in each village), 55 counsellors and 24 coordinating counsellors (one in each sub-district), and hundreds of village government employees and community leaders.

SAKERA JEMPOL Initiative addresses gender inequality through two actions. First, through the Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children (P2TP2A) at local and district level, public outreach has been conducted as a routine activity. This includes the spreading of information and understanding about the Law on Women and Children Protection. This is imperative since most of women and girls who live at the villages have limited understanding about it. Second, through this initiative, Local Government of Pasuruan has implemented a gender responsive planning and budgeting. In this process, women voices are heard and policy to be formulated fairly.

This initiative has had a positive effect on community groups vulnerable to violence or ‘key populations’. Those in this particular key population include rural communities with little access to services, low socio-economic communities, and families experiencing divorce or separation. In Pasuruan District, there are 199,695 people included in this key population. Using a real-life case as an example, an 8-year-old girl was abused in Sekarjoho Village. Her family came from a low socio-economic background, with a dirt-floor house. Her mother was unemployed; her father’s whereabouts were unknown. The perpetrator raped the girl, before taking her into the woods, stuffing her mouth with soil, and hiding her beneath bushes. Based on information from two key informants (a community health worker and a village government employee), the case was reported to the Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children (P2TP2A). Within five hours, the perpetrator had been caught and the victim had received complete medical and psychological care. The girl has since returned to school but remains under P2TP2A’s observation. This initiative has awakened an awareness and responsibility in the community to report cases of violence. With broad participation in such a program, perpetrators will think twice before committing acts of violence.

The initiative is evaluated through two methods: internal and external. Internal evaluation is done by P2TP2A at the sub-district and district levels. The aim of internal evaluation is to evaluate the development of cases, understand the challenges in the field, and determine the rate of case completion. Internal evaluation is conducted every three months, with additional annual evaluation. External evaluation has been performed by Pasuruan Yudharta University on an annual basis, while Airlangga University has also held FGDs with key stakeholders. The aim of external evaluation is to refine the program to make it more effective and efficient. Three indicators are used for internal evaluation: 1) number of cases; 2) speed of handling; and 3) percentage of victims supported. Indicator 1 is the total of all cases reported over the previous year. Indicator 2 is measured from the time victims are identified, their cases reported and handled, and initial support from the District Social Affairs Office. Indicator 3 is the percentage of victims receiving holistic support. Two indicators are used for external evaluation: 1) implementation in line with SOPs; and 2) the impact of the innovation on the community and victims. Internal evaluation shows that there has been a decrease in the number of cases of VAWC. In 2016, there were 86 cases (71 women, 15 children); in 2017, 69 cases (35 women, 34 children); and in Jan-Oct 2018, 21 cases (7 women, 14 children). The speed with which victims of violence are supported has also improved, from 3-5 days to just 1 day. The rate of support for victims as been evaluated as being 100%, with all victims reporting violence supported. Meanwhile, external evaluation shows that implementation is in line with SOPs but that stakeholder collaboration needs to be improved.

There are three obstacles during the implementation of this initiative: (1) lack of coordination and communication among volunteers at villages and district level. This problem can be solved by conducting regular meeting and informal gathering among them; (2) Not all volunteers/key informants participated in Training Of Trainer (TOT) to improve their competency in assisting victim of VAWC, thus Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children conducted the ToT for them; (3) The report mechanism was needed to be updated from paper-based into technology/online-based. To tackle this problem, the Center then transformed the obsolete one into online-base platform.

This initiative is innovative because it uses key informants to report VAWC, meaning that victims are not left alone to report. Before this initiative, victims had to report incidences of violence to law enforcement by themselves and undergo a physical examination at a hospital before a statement would be recorded. This initiative innovatively uses community figures as key informants – 365 community health workers (one in each village), 55 counsellors and 24 coordinating counsellors (one in each sub-district), and hundreds of village government employees and community leaders.

This initiative is an original response to a local problem. It uses a new strategy (key informants) that has not been used previously in Indonesia, with the instruments used developed by the Pasuruan District Family Planning and Women’s Empowerment Office. Other elements, such as hotlines and improved medical records, have been adopted from elsewhere.

This initiative began in December 2015 in four sub-districts. By November 2018, it was running in all of Pasuruan’s 24 sub-districts, serving 1.7 million residents. The program is guaranteed to continue – it has been integrated into the Pasuruan District Strategic Plan for 2018-2023. The initiative is also currently being tested for national adoption by the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, and government members from West Sumatra Province, East Kalimantan Province, Malang City, Banyuwangi District, Brawijaya University, and Airlangga University have all visited Pasuruan on study trips to learn about the program and how to replicate it.

As mentioned in the previous answer, this initiative has been transferred to other localities in Indonesia.

Human resources involved as key informants include 365 community health workers, 79 counsellors, 365 village government employees and community leaders, and the Integrated Services Centre for Women and Children team, consisting of staff from local government offices (Family Planning and Women’s Empowerment Office, Social Affairs Office), health facilities, psychologists, child protection bodies, police, and women’s organisations. Pasuruan District government allocated USD 17,857 in 2016 for the program; USD 17,857 in 2017; USD 15,432 in 2018; and USD 14,292 in 2019. Incidental donations are also often given by child protection bodies for counselling and case handling.

This initiative began in December 2015 and will continue until there is no more VAWC.Its sustainability is relatively ensured because it has been integrated into the mid-term strategic plan for Pasuruan District 2018-2023. The initiative is supported by the Pasuruan District Decree on Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection; District Head Decree no. 260/532/HK/424.014/2017 on the Establishment of the Pasuruan District Integrated Centre for Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection 2013-2018; and District Head Decree on the Establishment of a Counselling Team for Victims of Violence against Women and Children at the Sub-district Level. These laws and regulations guarantee the initiative will continue.

Yes

The initiative is evaluated through two methods: internal and external. Internal evaluation is done by P2TP2A at the sub-district and district levels. The aim of internal evaluation is to evaluate the development of cases, understand the challenges in the field, and determine the rate of case completion. Internal evaluation is conducted every three months, with additional annual evaluation. External evaluation has been performed by Pasuruan Yudharta University on an annual basis, while Airlangga University has also held FGDs with key stakeholders. The aim of external evaluation is to refine the program to make it more effective and efficient.

Three indicators are used for internal evaluation: 1) number of cases; 2) speed of handling; and 3) percentage of victims supported. Indicator 1 is the total of all cases reported over the previous year. Indicator 2 is measured from the time victims are identified, their cases reported and handled, and initial support from the District Social Affairs Office. Indicator 3 is the percentage of victims receiving holistic support. Two indicators are used for external evaluation: 1) implementation in line with SOPs; and 2) the impact of the innovation on the community and victims.

Internal evaluation shows that there has been a decrease in the number of cases of VAWC. In 2016, there were 86 cases (71 women, 15 children); in 2017, 69 cases (35 women, 34 children); and in Jan-Oct 2018, 21 cases (7 women, 14 children). The speed with which victims of violence are supported has also improved, from 3-5 days to just 1 day. The rate of support for victims as been evaluated as being 100%, with all victims reporting violence supported. Meanwhile, external evaluation shows that implementation is in line with SOPs but that stakeholder collaboration needs to be improved.

This initiative works across horizontal and vertical government institutions. On the horizontal side there are Family Planning and Women’s Empowerment Office, Social Affairs Office, child protection bodies, and local police department. The local government offices are the leading sector and provide strategic implementation coordination. While on the vertical side, local governments offices work with Ministry of Women and Children Protection at national level and with the village governments. Health facilities at sub-district provide medical services for victims, and Social Affairs Office provides psychological rehabilitation. The police department at district level receive community reports; facilitate the publication of physical examination letters based on the hospital reports; and coordinate the full reporting process. To ensure a better understanding about their roles in this integrated program, all these government stakeholders have regular meeting once in three months. From this meeting, problems, obstacles, and potential threats to be mitigated. The key success for this integrated manner was the strong commitment from each top leader of the agencies. However, like an orchestra, the head of Pasuruan District is the top leader among them. His leadership has led this initiative blooming and obtains full support either from horizontal and vertical government institution.

The stakeholders involved in this initiative are local government offices (Family Planning and Women’s Empowerment Office, Social Affairs Office), child protection bodies, universities, police, and legal aid bodies. The local government offices are the leading sector and provide strategic implementation coordination, while the village government facilitates the key informants. Health facilities provide medical services for victims, and Social Affairs Office provides psychological rehabilitation. Yudharta University also works with a psychological consultation organization called Geofira to provide psychological support for victims. An NGO called Child Protection Association provides support to victims and oversees the legal process, while Bhakti Perintis Legal Aid Body provides legal support and facilitates case closure. The police receive community reports; facilitate the publication of physical examination letters based on the hospital reports; and coordinate the full reporting process. The Family Welfare Association, women’s organisations, religious organisations, community leaders, and volunteer groups support anti-violence campaigns through social media and directly raise awareness of the reporting and handling process. These figures also support victims to return to society.

This initiative shows that the role of the community, and especially of key informants, is crucial in the success of a program. Based on data from Jan-Oct 2018, out of 21 cases, all were reported by key informants (community health workers, village government employees, and community leaders). Meanwhile, family members of key informants were reluctant to report cases, often because their own family member was the perpetrator. This is one area where the program can be improved. If the initiative is to be replicated in other areas, we recommend that families vulnerable to violence are not involved as key informants, as this can lead to conflict. Key informants must have a strong track record, be sensitive towards victims of violence, and have a high level of empathy.