Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Indonesia (Ratification: 2000)

Indonesia (ratification: 2000)

The Committee takes note of the Government’s first and second reports, and of the communication of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) dated 25 June 2003. Referring to the comments made by the Committee under the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), and taking into account that Article 3(a) of the Convention provides that the worst forms of child labour include "all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour", the Committee is of the view that the issues of trafficking of children and forced labour of children on fishing platforms should be examined more specifically under this Convention. The Committee requests the Government to supply further information on the following points.

Article 3 of the Convention. The worst forms of child labour. Clause (a). Slavery and practices similar to slavery. The sale and trafficking of children. The Committee notes the ICFTU’s indication that the trafficking of persons, including for the purpose of prostitution, is widespread. The ICFTU also states that as many as 20 per cent of the 5 million migrant workers, who leave Indonesia to work in other countries, are victims of trafficking. The ICFTU further indicates that there are reports of the sale of children in exchange for promises of work and money.

In reply to the comments made by the ICFTU, the Government states that the elimination of trafficking is not an easy task since it relates to cross-border crimes. The Government also indicates that a draft Bill on trafficking is under preparation.

The Committee notes that section 68(2) of Law No. 23/2002 on Child Protection, prohibits the kidnapping, selling and trafficking of children under 18 years of age. Section 83 of that law imposes penalties on anyone who trades, sells or kidnaps children for personal or pecuniary gain. It notes that the term "trafficking" is not defined and that there appears to be no penalty for the offence of trafficking. The Committee hopes that the new Bill on trafficking will be adopted soon and will: (i) provide for a clear definition of the term "trafficking"; (ii) prohibit the trafficking of children under 18 years of age for labour or sexual exploitation; and (iii) provide for appropriately dissuasive penal sanctions. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on progress made towards the adoption of the new Bill, and to provide a copy of it as soon as it is adopted.

Article 5. Mechanisms to monitor the implementation of the provisions giving effect to this Convention. 1. The police. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that the competency and capability of the officers responsible for combating trafficking will be continued and improved. The Committee observes that the police work in cooperation and collaboration with the Ministry of Social Welfare, the Ministry for Women’s Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other related ministries since January 2003. The police are also carrying out investigations in prostitution areas in different provinces which sometimes result in the arrest of the perpetrators of the trafficking and the finding and returning of victims to their places of origin. The Committee observes that a two-year police training project was launched, in August 2003, with the support of ILO-IPEC. The Committee accordingly asks the Government to provide information on the concrete measures taken to train the police on the worst forms of child labour, especially the trafficking of children under 18, and the results achieved.

2. Labour inspectorate. The Committee notes that labour inspectors guarantee the implementation of labour laws and regulations (section 176 of the Manpower Act). Labour inspectors can be granted special authorization to act as civil servants. Hence, they have the authority to investigate individuals suspected of having committed a labour crime, to confiscate items found, to examine documents connected with labour crimes, and to request the assistance of experts. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that training sessions were conducted in several provinces to provide labour inspectors with the necessary knowledge to combat child trafficking. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the inspections carried out by labour inspectors in order to combat the trafficking of children for sexual and labour exploitation, and the results achieved.

Article 6. Programmes of action to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. 1. National Action Plan. The Committee notes, with interest, that a five-year National Action Plan for Abolishing Woman and Child Trafficking was endorsed through Presidential Decree No. 88/2002 dated 30 December 2002. It notes that the National Action Plan provides for an overview of the situation of trafficking in children in Indonesia. According to an ILO assessment ("Support to the Indonesian National Plan of Action and the Development of the Time-Bound Programme for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour", 2003 (pages 48 and 50)), 21,500 children were victims of trafficking for the purpose of prostitution in Java, in 2003. The trafficking of children for prostitution occurs mainly in Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java. These locations have therefore been identified for primary interventions. The trafficking of children for the purpose of sexual exploitation also occurs at the international level; receiving countries include Malaysia (mainly Kuala Lumpur and Serawak), Brunei Darusslam, Hong Kong (China), Taiwan (China) and Australia (abovementioned ILO report, page 107). The Plan’s objectives are to reduce by half the number of child victims of trafficking by 2013. The National Action Plan aims at: (a) ensuring the existence of legal norms and actions against traffickers of women and children; (b) guaranteeing the social rehabilitation and reintegration of victims of trafficking; (c) preventing all forms of trafficking; and (d) developing cooperation and coordination between institutions at the national and international levels that deal with the trafficking of women and children. The Committee also notes that one of the targets of the National Action Plan is to increase the number of crisis service centres for the rehabilitation and social reintegration of child victims of trafficking. It takes note of the Government’s indication that 200 special centres for combating trafficking were established. A second target of the National Action Plan is to obtain a situational map of problems and criminal cases on trafficking in women and children. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the number of victims of trafficking who are under 18, the destination countries as well as the purpose of trafficking. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the achievements of the National Plan of Action for the Elimination of Trafficking in Women and Children, and its impact with regard to removing child victims of trafficking from labour or sexual exploitation and providing for their rehabilitation and social integration.

2. Task force responsible for the implementation of the National Action Plan. The Committee notes the Government’s indication to the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC/C/65/Add.23, 7 July 2003, additional report, pages 110 and 112) regarding the establishment of a task force to serve as one of the focal points for the implementation of the National Plan of Action for the Elimination of Trafficking in Women and Children. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved by the task force with regard to the implementation of the abovementioned National Action Plan. It also requests the Government to increase its efforts to attain sustainable results in reducing child trafficking.

3. ILO/IPEC TICSA Project on combating child trafficking for sexual and labour exploitation. The Committee notes from the information provided by the ILO’s Jakarta Office that the subregional ILO/IPEC TICSA Project was adopted in June 2003 to complement the ILO/IPEC Project of Support to the Indonesian National Action Plan for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour. The TICSA Project aims to contribute to the progressive elimination of trafficking in child labour and sexual exploitation in Indonesia. This will be done by: (i) assisting children and families in high-risk sending areas to reduce children’s vulnerability to trafficking; and (ii) improving the capacity of social partners to provide services to rehabilitate and reintegrate child victims of trafficking. The project will provide inputs, good practices and lessons learned that will be up-scaled under the ILO/IPEC Time-Bound Programme (TBP), launched in 2003, to combat the worst forms of child labour, including the trafficking of persons for sexual and labour exploitation. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the impact of the ILO/IPEC TICSA Project on combating the sexual and labour exploitation of children under 18 years of age.

Article 7, paragraph 2. Time-bound measures. Clause (d). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk. Children on fishing platforms. The ICFTU indicates that forced labour is prohibited by law, but continues to exist in practice. According to the ICFTU, the forced labour of children is widespread and occurs in different activities, including prostitution, drug trafficking, domestic servitude and fishing. The ICFTU accepts that actions taken by the Government and the ILO have helped to reduce the number of children forced to work on remote fishing platforms. It contends, however, that the practice continues to exist.

In reply to the ICFTU’s comments, the Government states that, for developing countries such as Indonesia, eliminating or reducing child labour is not an easy task since the problem of working children is closely related to other issues such as poverty, culture and community awareness, including the role of parents. The Government nevertheless points to its efforts and serious intention to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. Hence, a National Action Plan for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour was launched, in 2003, with the support of the ILO-IPEC. This National Action Plan (mentioned under Article 6) calls for a National Action Programme to be developed to achieve the objectives of the National Action Plan. This National Action Programme is the Time-Bound Measure Programme (TBP) framework which is supported by ILO/IPEC and will run from 2003 to 2007. ILO/IPEC support for the National Action Plan will consist of a two-part strategy. The first part will focus on promoting change in policy and the enabling environment. The second part will involve direct-targeted interventions in five sectors identified as priority areas for the elimination of child labour. A total of 31,450 children will be targeted for prevention and withdrawal from exploitative and hazardous work through the provision of educational and non-educational services following direct action from the project. Of this total, 26,350 will be prevented from being engaged in child labour, and 5,100 children will be withdrawn from work. In addition some 7,500 families will benefit from socio-economic opportunities provided by the project, as will many communities in the target area. One of the key objectives of the TBP is to develop and implement a programme on the elimination of child labour in the diving and offshore sector.

The Committee notes that the ILO estimates that more than 7,000 children are engaged in deep-sea fishing in north Sumatra ("Support to the Indonesian National Plan of Action and The Development of the Time-Bound Programme for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour", page 50). It also notes the indication of the Government representative to the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards at its June 2004 session that a project was launched in 2000 and extended in April 2004. The project’s objectives are to prevent the employment of children on fishing platforms, to raise awareness on the danger of working on a fishing platform, and to provide for direct assistance and the removal of children from this type of work. The Committee observes that the project aims at reducing the number of children under 18 working on fishing platforms from 7,000 to 1,000 in five years’ time. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that ILO/IPEC technical assistance has contributed to the withdrawal of 344 children from fishing platforms and that 2,111 children were prevented from working in "jermas" since 2000. The Committee requests the Government to increase its efforts to attain sustainable results in eliminating the forced labour of children on fishing platforms. It also asks the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the TBP on the elimination of forced labour of children on fishing platforms and the results achieved.

Article 8. 1. Extradition agreements for trafficking offences. The Committee notes that Indonesia is a member of Interpol which helps cooperation between countries in the different regions especially in the fight against trafficking of children. It also observes that the Government signed in 2003 the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crimes. The Committee further notes that Indonesia has extradition agreements with several countries, including Australia, Hong Kong (China), Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. According to Law No. 1/1979, a person engaged in the trafficking of Indonesian persons (in Indonesia or abroad) can be extradited and tried in Indonesia as long as those countries have extradition agreements with Indonesia. Traffickers found in Indonesia who have committed a crime of trafficking in another country could also be extradited to this country where an extradition agreement exists. The Committee asks the Government to provide a copy of Law No. 1/1979 as well as information on the extraditions that have occurred with regard to child trafficking offences.

2. Elimination of poverty. The Committee notes from the information provided by the ILO’s Jakarta Office that Indonesia is finalizing, with the support of the ILO, a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) which will be funded by the World Bank and the IMF. The PRSP’s objectives are to promote growth and reduce poverty. Noting that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee asks the Government to supply information on any notable impact of the PRSP towards eliminating the worst forms of child labour, in particular the trafficking of children for sexual and labour exploitation.

The Committee is also addressing a direct request to the Government concerning other detailed points.