From 2020 to 2022, the Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry recorded 1,418 human trafficking cases in Indonesia that affected 1,581 people. The majority of victims came from vulnerable groups, especially women and children.

Moved by the sheer scale of the humanitarian plight, Rumah Hati Suci orphanage and the Women’s Gospel Community held the Justice & Mercy seminar on Sept. 22 in Soehanna Hall at The Energy Building in the Sudirman Central Business District, South Jakarta.

Attendees included Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister I Gusti Ayu Bintang Darmawati and Jakarta Archbishop Ignatius Kardinal Suharyo.

Lead organizer Imelda T. Joseph said the seminar aimed to increase awareness of human trafficking and to provide information on how to prevent the criminal activity as well as help victims.

"We are called to respect and protect the dignity of every person," she said in a statement.

The Justice & Mercy seminar was moderated by Driyarkara School of Philosophy (STF Driyarkara) rector Simon Petrus Lili Tjahjadi, who is also an ordained priest, and discussed the prevalence of human trafficking. It also touched on some of the measures that the Indonesian Catholic Church and its members have taken to mitigate the issue.

Mia Marina, executive director of Yayasan Integritas Justitia Madani Indonesia (IJM), highlighted the common misconception that victims of human trafficking had little to no formal education or were financially vulnerable.

She noted that the statistics had changed in the past few years, including as a result of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We found that even those who had completed higher education have become victims of online scams, even people with doctorates. Some victims are well-off and hold high [workplace] positions, but are still ensnared by trafficking,” Mia said.

Father Chrisanctus Paschalis Saturnus, who chairs the Pastoral Peace and Justice Commission for Migrants in the Diocese of Pangkalpinang in the Bangka Belitung Islands, called for an end to the naivety and ignorance among the public as regards human trafficking.

“In the context of the church, constant and tireless education is vital to reach the uninformed and [people] at risk, as those who are responsible for this crime will try to find ways to get around [the law],” he said.

Also on the front line of the church’s efforts to combat human trafficking is Sister Irena Handayani of Ursulin Indonesia (Order of Santa Ursula), who is the Jakarta coordinator of Talitha Kum Indonesia, the local chapter of the International Network of Consecrated Life Against Trafficking in Persons.

Sister Irena highlighted Talitha Kum’s global efforts against trafficking and introduced two trafficking victims who found refuge in the organization’s network of nuns that had opened their convents as safe houses.

“Talitha Kum focuses on prevention, so we provide education to schools and communities as well as vulnerable groups, such as newly laid off factory workers. Some are wary of NGOs, so we collaborate with religious leaders to spread awareness,” she said.

Following the seminar was a preview for an upcoming opera titled Musuh si Mucikari (The pimp’s enemy) about Auw Tjoei Lan, the wife of Capt. Lie Tjian Tjoen, who saved victims of human trafficking in Batavia in the early 20th century.

Slated to premiere in April 2024, the opera is directed by Chendra Panatan and features music by renowned composer and pianist Ananda Sukarlan and the libretto by Emi Suy. During the preview, Ananda performed an aria with soprano Ratnaganadi Paramita, the star of Musuh si Mucikari.

"With this opera, I hope that the audience will be touched and feel the phenomenon of human trafficking emotionally, because this will be more important to move us all to do something about it, rather than just understanding facts and data," said Ananda.

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