July 23 is national children day in Indonesia.
We never have a specific celebration like annual doll festival in Japan or parents giving presents to children like in South Korea.
If there's a celebration it is always about social condition of children in Indonesia, children education and all problems related to children.
For example, a foundation or non government organization runs an event dedicated to homeless children who 'work' and spend most of their time on the street and mainly don't go to school (anymore).
I expect that the Indonesian government will pay more attention on children.
As we all know, right now there is lack of efforts from them to handle abused children.
Here handle means not only giving under age's financial or medical support when they're physically abused by their own parents or other people.
In that case, I think the government has started to care although it happened sometimes when the media blew up the case.
So, it is somewhat unplanned reaction.
Beside that, I hope they will also have a program to cope with the psychological problem of the children after the horrible event, so that no children will live in trauma.
Children must have the same right to get education, medical treatment, and socially safe environment.
I am wondering now what this national day will influence the future of our children.
I hope for positive influence certainly.
We can see on television how they are abused, neglected, used, trafficked, raped, kidnapped and killed.
What we do today is not enough to stop this lunacy.
I mean letting our children to have those traumatic experiences is a lunacy, if you agree with me.
The big question is HOW! How can this BIG country with over 237 millions of people (based on the latest census result as the count is still processing) manage itself especially children.
According to the 2010 census of BPS, we don't have the number yet but I can say we have so many children.
If we are honest enough to ourselves, it is actually not difficult to let every children have their right to live properly, having education without any cost, means they don't have to pay any rupiahs; becoming healthy and doesn't need to pay for medical treatment if they get ill for instance; if those two things are guaranteed by the government there will be less crime -because fulfilling children's needs is often the main reason for doing crime.
This country does not only have plenty of islands and huge population, but Allah has also blessed the country with so many natural resources, from which we can be rich.
And therefore, money will not be our problem anymore.
If only our government had enough guts to send the thieves' butts away from our land, which come from other countries and also local.
Some of our best resources that are stolen by these thieves are gold and uranium in Papua, and sand in Sumatera.
Otherwise, this is only utopia (again).