Langit* (11) and Bulan* (9) have never experienced formal education. The remote location of their home exacerbates their situation, making it challenging for them to attend school. Every day, they only interact with their mother, Luna* (33), and their grandmother in an isolated area within a village in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. One crucial requirement for children to attend school is having complete identification documents. Unfortunately, they didn’t possess them due to their family circumstances.
Jumahira (26) and Karlina (26), both members of the group of Community-based Integrated Child Protection Group (PATBM) assisted by Save the Children program supported by MARS, work to ensure that children’s right to identity and education is fulfilled. They proactively visit Luna and her children, assisting them in obtaining id card and access to school.
During the initial visit, Luna had no complete personal data. She couldn’t even remember her own birthdate and only recalled the birthdates of her two children. Recognizing the urgency, Jumahira and Karlina assisted Luna in obtaining identification documents for her family.
The process was not as simple as turning one’s hand. Jumahira, Karlina, and other PATBM members initiated the process through discussions, organizing the required data, and navigating the governmental offices, from the sub-district, midwife, village, to the civil registration. This process alone took up to two months.
“We discovered Mrs. Luna* had never had any recorded data throughout all these decades. She was not registered,” explained Jumahira.
After completing the documentation for the mother, they proceeded to record data for Langit and Bulan. Eventually, in November 2023, the two siblings found a place to attend school. As they had never been to school before, the PATBM group also tried to obtain a dispensation from the school principal.
In the process, the siblings were initially going to be enrolled in a special school, but the PATBM group rejected this because Langit and Bulan were not disabled. They were mistakenly assumed to have disabilities because they did not speak when spoken to. According to Karlina and Jumahira, this was because the siblings had never interacted with anyone other than their mother and grandmother.
“They speak awkwardly when talking to others. All this time, they’ve only spoken to those they really know,” explained Karlina.
Various solutions were discussed by Karlina with the school principal, ranging from online schooling, but it was challenging due to limited resources, to providing books, but this was not chosen because Langit and Bulan were deemed to need interaction with others. In the end, they decided that Langit and Bulan would go to school at least once a week. The school principal and teachers also commit to protecting Langit and Bulan to prevent bullying risk due to their unique situation of being older but starting school.
“There’s a sense of pride. Although initially through a complicated process, thankfully, these children can return to school,” expressed Jumahira.
*) Names are disguised to protect the sources.