The government’s response to rampant sexual violence against children has been given a mixed reception by activists as well as by victims and their families.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has inked a regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) that could lead to child rapists being chemically castrated or even executed.

Helga Worotitjan, 43, who was sexually abused as a 5-year-old, said it took a long time for her to realize that what happened during her childhood had scarred her.

She revealed that her grandmother, a dominant figure in her family, had abused her by touching her inappropriately.

“I drew pictures about what my grandmother did to me and told my mother. But she did not really pay attention and asked me to be quiet,” she told media at the office of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI).

Helga said that her grandmother treated her well by giving her anything that she wanted and taking her out of town on holiday, which led her at the time to believe what was done to her was a form of affection.

She said she never underwent psychotherapy until 2006 when she thought that there was something wrong with her.

“I had trust issues in relationships and also wanted to commit suicide every time I had severe problems […]. My psychiatrist explained that occurred because I had experienced trauma as a result of what my grandmother did to me,” Helga said.

Helga underwent psychotherapy for five years and she claimed that she was getting better but it would not erase her trauma entirely.

The public’s demand for the death penalty has intensified following the gang rape and murder of a 14-yearold schoolgirl in Bengkulu, as well as other rape cases in other parts of the country.

As a result, sexual abuse and violence against children has come into the spotlight, raising concerns over the safety of children.

The move to impose capital punishment and chemical castration on sex offenders has led to local and international criticism, given Indonesia’s already worrying human rights record.

The country, which implements a tough drug law that has seen dozens of drug traffickers executed, may now see the possibility of even more death sentences.

The new Perppu, which is set to replace the 2002 Child Protection Law, has also been condemned for authorizing chemical castration, as human rights activists and legal observers doubt whether the government has the capacity to carry out such a punishment.

Helga said that even though she had experienced a hard time after the assaults, she believed that chemical castration would not solve or reduce the number of cases of sexual violence against children.

“Countering violence with violence is not a solution,” she said.

Ahmad Samiran, whose 2-yearold child LN was molested and killed, allegedly by their own neighbor, however, said he supported both the death penalty and chemical castration for rapists.

The resident of Bogor, West Java, who lost his young daughter earlier this month said that what had been done to her was cruel and unforgivable.

“There was only one perpetrator, not dozens [like in the Bengkulu case]. The victim was not a teenager or an adult, she was only two years and two months old,” he said.

Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) chairman Daeng Mohammad Faqih said that conducting chemical castration was against the profession’s ethics. He also questioned the procedure for conducting such a punishment, saying the country did not have the expertise to carry it out.

“We cannot say whether we agree or not [with chemical castration]. It’s not a medical procedure so it is not within the remit of this profession,” he said.

Faqih also said that sexual offenses were not merely physical acts, but also a mental problem, and castration only curbed the physical aspect.

He suggested that the government focus on the rehabilitation of offenders. (wnd)      

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