Childhood Sexual Violence in Indonesia: A Systematic Review

Abstract

There has been relatively little research into the prevalence of childhood sexual violence (CSV) as well as the risk and protective factors for CSV in low- and middle-income countries including Indonesia. Systematic searches conducted in English and Bahasa Indonesia in this review identified 594 records published between 2006 and 2016 in peer-reviewed journals and other literature including 299 Indonesian records. Fifteen studies, including nine prevalence studies, met the quality appraisal criteria developed for this review. The review found that CSV research is scarce: Only one study included nationally representative prevalence estimates. Varying definitions for CSV, survey methods, and sample characteristics limited the generalizability of the data. The available evidence points to significant risk of sexual violence affecting both girls and boys across many geographical and institutional settings. Married adolescent girls are vulnerable to sexual violence by partners in their homes. Children in schools are vulnerable to CSV by peers and adults. Victims seldom disclose incidents and rarely seek support. In addition, early childhood experiences of trauma were strongly associated with later perpetration of sexual violence and revictimization. Limited information is available about protective factors. This review synthesizes evidence about what is currently known about CSV in Indonesia and identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the existing research. A more robust evidence base regarding CSV is required to better inform policy and justify investment into prevention programs.

Adverse Childhood Experiences, Mental Health, and Risk Behaviors Among Men in the Solomon Islands

“…30 Similarly, the global review of links between multiple ACEs and adult health problems in 37 studies by Hughes et al located none from the South Pacific region. 5 One potentially important trend that appears when comparing this survey to other studies or reviews in the East Asia region 7,12,13,16 is that there are substantial national differences in risk of several forms of adversity and interpersonal violence between Pacific Islands and proximal Asian countries. Although further work is necessary to understand causes of this variation, it is becoming very clear that summative prevalence estimates for the Asia-Pacific region may not be very useful for describing the situation within individual countries and cultures.…”

“…Compared with research in many Western countries, the evidence base on ACEs in the Asia-Pacific region is relatively sparse. 6,7 This is particularly the case in Pacific Island nations, such as the Solomon Islands. Most studies classed as being from the Asia-Pacific region have been done in heavily populated Asian countries or Australia.…”

The Quality of Forensic Child Interviewing in Child Sexual Abuse Cases in Indonesia

“…Reporting CSA to authorities in a non-Western, collectivistic culture is perceived as a harmful decision because of shame and the need to save face (Xie et al 2017). Rumble et al (2018) found that victims in Indonesia seldom disclose incidents, rarely seek support and consider CSA a private issue. Moreover, if parents or children decide to report to the police, they meet an authority and a power differential.…”

Victims of Physical Violence Have a Higher Risk to Be Perpetrators: A Study in High School Students Population

“…More than half of the respondents to this study claimed that the perpetrators of the most frequent acts of violence were the fathers and mothers of the children. Several studies reported that perpetrators of violence against children were either one or both of their parents [11], [12], [13]. Another study reported that the perpetrators of violence against children lived together in their home [14].…”