Posted by Asia Views | Oct 28, 2020 |
BangkokPost-Oct 28 Parliament is considering a proposal to form a reconciliation committee consisting of representatives of all stakeholders to resolve the ongoing political conflict. House Speaker Chuan Leekpai said on Tuesday...
Read MorePosted by Asia Views | Oct 28, 2020 |
VietnamExpress-Oct 27 The recovery by blue chip stocks in the second and third quarters has increased Vietnamese billionaires’ net worth by 45 percent to a combined $14.8 billion. Between March 18 and October 26 their combined...
Read MorePosted by Asia Views | Oct 27, 2020 |
Oct 25, 2020 The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport is working with the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, development partners and private sectors to install the internet at thousands of public schools as part of a...
Read MorePosted by Asia Views | Oct 27, 2020 |
JakartaPost-Oct 26 The government has reaffirmed its plans to issue a presidential regulation (Perpres) on renewable energy this year as it seeks to boost the development of clean energy and reach its energy mix target. The...
Read MorePosted by Asia Views | Oct 27, 2020 |
MalayMail-Oct 27 UMNO’s decision last night to continue propping up the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government is a political lifeline for Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, but doubts remain as to how long his administration can last...
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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD
Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.
“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”
