W

hen a child is about to be born a family typically creates much commotion to ensure everything is prepared for a safe delivery for mother and child, and a safe environment to bring up a newborn. Fortunately many couples now also remember to arrange for the birth certificate — the vital paperwork that so many neglect, where at least 36 million under the age of 18 despite having Indonesian parents are legally stateless, according to figures stated last year by Social Affairs Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa.

In 2010, the United Nations reported that 60 percent of children under 5 were not registered. “Indonesia ranks in the bottom 20 countries in the world in its registration of children and the problem is worse in rural areas,” it said.

But as we reported this week, Depok, Jakarta’s close neighbor in West Java is no longer “rural,” yet has almost 200,000 children without birth certificates, as only 62 percent are registered. Like many other parents the families will rush to arrange the necessary documents only when their children are of school age, as birth certificates are required for enrollment.

Since independence, Indonesia is only seeing its third generation becoming parents, whose grandparents likely relied only on their elders’ oral testimonies to determine their ages. Thus the government has stepped up awareness campaigns on birth certificates, the basic right of the child. Regencies and municipalities must provide such certificates for free, in line with the 2002 Child Protection Law though reports of officials demanding bribes are still heard.

Therefore, areas near major cities, let alone the capital, have little excuse for neglecting children’s basic rights. Apart from avoiding hassles during school enrollment, children need the certificates to access health services and other entitlements and needs throughout adulthood, such as further education and getting married.

Many administrations have also integrated the facilitation of these services into hospitals and community health centers where children are born. Parents are therefore immediately assisted to make sure they leave the hospital with both the baby and birth certificate.

The Depok Civil Registry and Population Agency says it is also working with schools and the Indonesian Midwives Association (IBI) to boost awareness and ease documentation processes of children. Regional administrations like Depok will need to further investigate the reasons why so many birth certificates are lacking. Apart from parents’ lack of awareness, they may also lack requirements to apply for birth certificates, i.e. the parents’ IDs, marriage booklets and family cards.

For instance women from villages in Banten, another neighboring province of Jakarta, have said their marriages, divorces, or both, were not registered and formalized. Therefore they could not attain birth certificates for their children. Distance and transportation costs further discourage villagers from going back and forth to their local population offices to arrange for all these documents.

The government wants 80 percent of children nationwide to possess birth certificates by the end of this year. At least residents and administrations near Jakarta should be able to ensure the basic rights of all their children.