Culture and Way of Life

After researching street children in Indonesia I have learnt more about the Indonesian culture and way of life. I have grasped an understanding on how the modern Indonesian government deals with serious issues such as street children. I learnt that many organisations support educating street children, with an article from ‘Kompasiana’ stating, “The existence of skill based education for street children is a persuasive approach, so that the street children themselves want to be trained and educated”. I was surprised to learn how important education was to Indonesians and how they efficiently use it to enrich street children. I also learnt how many local Indonesians ignore street children and also view them as an issue. Many individuals in Indonesia live their lives buying cigarettes and newspapers from these street children, making no effort to help them. Also many young girls are forced into prostitution to survive live on the streets and to gain an income these young girls are required customers, often consisting of elderly men. I was alarmed to discover child prostitution was extremely common in Indonesia along with being disgusted with the individuals who exploit these innocent children. Ultimately through my research I found both positive and negative aspects of the modern Indonesian’s way of life when associated with street children. 

Photograph of a young street child accepting money from a stranger. Image from: http://www.jakartaupdates.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/anak-jalanan.jpg  

Bibliography

Bali Life Foundation, (2013), “Bali Life Foundation’, URL: http://www.balilife.org/home.aspx, accessed on the 10^th of August.

Government of Western Australia, (2014), ‘Child Health’, URL:  http://www.health.wa.gov.au/services/category.cfm?Topic_ID=18, accessed on the 12^th of August.

Jakarta Globe, (2014), ‘Giving Kids a Bright Future through Birth Certificates’, URL: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/count-me-in/giving-kids-bright-future-birth-certificates/, accessed on the 13^th of August.  

Kompasiana, (2013), “Pendidikan Untuk Anak Jalanan, Berikan Mereka Keterampilan dan Life – Skill”, URL: http://edukasi.kompasiana.com/2013/03/22/pendidikan-untuk-anak-jalanan-berikan-mereka-keterampilan-dan-life-skill-544900.html, accessed on the 13^th of August.