Fulfillment of Street Children's Educational Rights in Bengkulu City

Fulfillment of Street Children's Educational Rights in Bengkulu City
Writer :
Hanni Susanty
Editor :
Intan Qonita N
Translator :
Intan Qonita N

Education is a very important human need as a preparation of human resources for the development of the nation and state. Advances in science and technology have resulted in changes and growth in a more complex direction. This raises social problems and new demands that cannot be predicted beforehand, so that education always faces problems because of the gap between what is expected and the results that can be achieved from the educational process.

To overcome these problems, the role and process of education need special attention from the participation and involvement of all parties. Education nurture students and form a complete human being who fears God Almighty. Educational development should be prioritized because a nation's progress can be seen from the progress of education. The students, teachers, teaching and learning processes, management, educational services and other supporting facilities must be coordinated and work well with each other.

The number of children who take to the streets to earn a living is increasing day by day. Data from the Ministry of Social Affairs shows that the number of street children in 2017 was still around 36,000 people and is now around 232,894 people. The number of Indonesian children aged 0-18 years according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in 2018 reached 79.8 million children. Those who fall into the neglected and almost abandoned category reached 17.6 million or 22.14 percent.

The phenomenon of street children also occurs in Bengkulu City. Data from the Bengkulu City Social Service shows that in 2011 there were 210 street children and in 2012 it increased to 235 children spread across various corners of the city.

According to Article 9 paragraph (1) of Law No. 23 of 2002 concerning Child Protection, it is stated "Every child has the right to receive education and teaching in the context of personal development and intelligence level according to interests and including street children. The human rights of neglected children and street children are essentially the same as human rights in general, as stated in Law no. 39 of 1999 concerning Human Rights, and the Decree of the President of the Republic of Indonesia No. 36 of 1990 concerning the ratification of the Convention on the Right of the Child (Amendment IV, Law Number 39 of 1999). The children referred to above are also street children.

Street children are children who spend most of their time earning a living or wandering the streets or other public places. Life as street children is not a pleasant choice, but a compulsion that they must accept for certain reasons. Psychologically, they are children who at a certain level do not have a strong emotional mental base, while at the same time they have to struggle with the harsh street environment and tend to affect the development and base of their personality.

Street children should be given education for mental development and intelligence. Regarding education issues, Law Number 39 of 1999 in Article 9 paragraph 1 also states that "Every child has the right to receive education and teaching in the context of his personal development and level of intelligence according to his interests and talents."

Based on the results of surveys and interviews that I have conducted as a social educator, by taking samples of several street children in the shopping centers of Jalan Suprapto and Simpang Lima, Bengkulu City, that the problem with children in Bengkulu City is due to the economic demands of the family, so they are forced to work to help people. old. The problem of children shows that there are still many violations against children's rights. Certainly,  a real, integrated and continuous effort must be made to overcome this child's problem.

The main reason for children to go to the streets is because the family's economic reason is still the main driving force for children to work on the road. As a result, many street children drop out of school at school age due to lack of funds. An interesting fact is that the child is used as the source of the family's economy. This means that street children are indeed an economic asset for the family. However, there are also street children who still care about their education, so they continue to go to school.

On the other hand, social factors are also able to explain the phenomenon of street children who become child labourers. This is due to the low aspirations of parents about the importance of education for their children. With low understanding and aspirations from parents about the importance of education for children's future, it causes children to easily leave school without a good reason. The lack of parental support for children who go to school synergizes with the encouragement of parents to invite, order and even force their children to go to the streets to work.

The Bengkulu City Government through its Vision and Mission seeks to advance the welfare of every citizen, this is related to the realization of a prosperous and dignified Bengkulu City. Based on the Vision and Mission, the Bengkulu City Government through the Social Service is obliged to provide guidance and supervision in the management of street children.

Local governments have an obligation regarding education, which is regulated in Article 2 of Law Number 2 of 1989, namely improving basic education services. In this case, the Office related to street children is the Social Service, where the Social Service functions to formulate technical policy materials, program planning, financial affairs and activities for administering government affairs and services, controlling and evaluating the implementation of tasks in the fields of Social Protection and Security, Social Empowerment, Social Rehabilitation and Management of the Poor and Employment Data. Meanwhile, the Education Office has the task of helping carry out government affairs and assisting tasks in the field of education.

Bengkulu City Regional Regulation (Perda) Number 03 of 2014 concerning the implementation of education that education is the right of everyone that must be fulfilled and carried out in order to educate the nation's life, increase faith and piety to God Almighty and have noble character and improve general welfare based on Pancasila and the Law -The 1945 Constitution. That the implementation of education in Bengkulu City is a shared responsibility between the City Government, parents and the community which is carried out according to educational norms and is directed to create a learning-loving community with reference to the National Education System.

The community is obliged to provide resource support in the implementation of education, while the government and local governments have the right to direct, guide, assist, and supervise the implementation of education in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The Government and Regional Governments are obliged to provide services and facilities, as well as guarantee the implementation of quality education for every citizen without discrimination and must ensure the availability of funds for the implementation of education for every citizen aged seven to fifteen years.

The role of the community in planning the implementation of supervision and evaluation of street children's education programs is regulated in Article 8 of Law Number 20 of 2003, namely "The community has the right to participate in planning the implementation of supervision and evaluation of educational programs." So that every citizen is responsible for the continuity of the implementation of education and the community has the right to participate in the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of educational programs.

Due to the widespread number of street children in Bengkulu City, the participation and role of religious leaders also become a very important part in alleviating street children. It is hoped that these religious leaders can provide education about the concept of family development because as we all know, the responsibility of parents in educating children is big. If children are preoccupied with education, they will not automatically take to the streets.

From the description of the conditions described above, it can be concluded that the fulfillment of the right to education for street children in Bengkulu City is in accordance with positive law. The majority of street children in Bengkulu City have obtained the right to basic education for at least 9 years. Although there are still some street children who drop out of school and choose to work on the streets to help the family's economy.
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