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5-year-old boy died on Saturday after he was allegedly beaten by his mother at a boarding house in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta, highlighting the low level of awareness for child protection in the capital.

The incident, which reportedly took place at around 5 p.m., occurred in a room located on the second floor and situated amid six other rented units.

Though some residents were in their rooms at the time, none came out to intervene.

The boy was pronounced dead at Graha Kedoya Hospital, his body showing signs of bruising on the feet and right hand, as well as evidence of rope burns on both his hands and feet, according to the West Jakarta Police.

A further examination was being conducted to ascertain the cause of death, they said, adding that the boy’s mother, NW, 25, was currently the main suspect in the child’s death.

West Jakarta Police criminal investigation head Sr. Adj. Comr. Edy Sitepu said on Monday that NW had admitted to beating her son in the past two months.

“She was upset that her child kept wetting his pants. The mother also said she was dismayed that he cried all the time,” Edy told The Jakarta Post.

NW, a single mother, allegedly beat her son and tied his hands and feet together with a piece of plastic rope, which Police later found at the crime scene.

Edy said that NW had admitted to spraying the child in the face with insect repellent to make him stop crying. She reportedly took her son to the hospital with an online ride-hailing service, but doctors pronounced the boy dead upon arrival.

NW will be charged under the Child Protection Law, which could lead to 15 years’ imprisonment.

Police said residents of the boarding house often heard the child crying at night, suggesting reoccuring abuse. However, none had reported the incidents to the police.

“They thought it was common for a child to cry,” Edy said.

The manager of the boarding house, Bryan Adam, 22, said residents had complained about the boy’s constant crying.

“We suspected that there may have been abuse, but I felt uneasy reproving [NW]. She looked normal and never had trouble paying the rent,” he said, describing NW as reserved.

She was not close to the other residents, he added.

Rahmat, 25, the housekeeper, said he once saw NW slap her son.

“I did nothing about it; I thought that perhaps the child was being naughty,” he said.

Jasra Putra, commissioner of the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), lambasted the neighbors for suspecting abuse but doing nothing to stop it.

According to the Child Protection Law, any suspicions of child abuse, both physical and psychological, must be reported to the police, he said.

Indonesian Child Protection Agency (LPAI) head Seto Mulyadi added that anyone who allows abuse to continue by failing to report it could face up to five years in prison. Abuse, even when committed with the excuse of educating a child, could never be justified, he said.

The KPAI has, therefore encouraged residents to be more aware of children’s safety.

“If residents do not want to report [child] abuse to the police, they can file an online report with us,” Jasra said.

Meanwhile, Seto said LPAI would meet with the Jakarta governor to discuss the establishment of child protection units in each neighborhood (RT) or community unit (RW), which already exist in South Tangerang.

“With those units, residents could easily report cases of [child] abuse to RT or RW heads. The unit could also hold activities to monitor children’s safety at home,” Seto said.