Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Indonesia (Ratification: 2000)

Articles 3 and 5 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and monitoring mechanisms. Clause (a). Sale and trafficking of children. The Committee notes the Government’s statement, in its report, that its existing legal framework, encompassing both laws and their implementing regulations, is sufficiently robust to take firm action against perpetrators of child trafficking. However, the Committee notes with regret that the Government does not provide information on the concrete measures taken to combat trafficking in children, as previously requested. The Committee therefore once again urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to combat child trafficking by: (i) strengthening the capacities of law enforcement bodies, including by means of training on anti-trafficking legislation and the provision of adequate resources; and (ii) ensuring that thorough investigations and prosecutions are carried out against persons who engage in the trafficking of children. In this regard, the Committee also once again requests the Government to provide information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as the specific penalties imposed in this respect.

Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for the production and trafficking of drugs. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) pursuant to Law No. 11 of 2012 on the Juvenile Criminal Justice System, it is recognized that children may become victims of criminal acts, including in narcotics-related cases; (2) the National Narcotics Agency conducts comprehensive investigations into persons involving children in the production, sale, or distribution of illicit narcotics; (3) in 2024, there were four cases involving five children in conflict with the law, four of these children were involved in narcotics-related offences committed jointly with adults, while one child was found to have committed a narcotics-related offence individually; and (4) in 2025, there were three cases involving three children in conflict with the law, one child was involved in a narcotics-related offence committed jointly with an adult, while two children were found to have committed narcotics-related offences individually.

The Committee observes that this information does not clearly indicate the outcomes of these cases, whether the adults concerned were prosecuted and convicted, and if the children involved were treated as victims and not offenders. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the outcomes of the above-mentioned cases, including whether the perpetrators were prosecuted and convicted, and how it ensured that the children involved were treated as victims rather than offenders. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number of investigations relating to the involvement of children in illicit activities, as well as on the number and nature of prosecutions, convictions and sanctions imposed.

Clause (d). Hazardous work. Child domestic workers. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that, the adoption of the Domestic Workers Protection Bill, which will regulate domestic work by children under 18 years of age, is still pending. The Government adds that, in the meantime, the Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 2 of 2015 on the Protection of Domestic Workers applies and already stipulates that domestic workers must be at least 18 years of age and possess a valid identity card (section 4).

The Committee notes, from the concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the continued concerns about the significant number of children, including some below the age of 15 years, engaged in child labour in domestic work (CRC/C/IDN/CO/5-6, 28 July 2025, para. 42). The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary effective and time-bound measures to protect children engaged in domestic work from the worst forms of child labour and to remove them from such work. It also requests the Government to provide:

• information on the measures taken to ensure the effective application of section 4 of the Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 2 of 2015 on the Protection of Domestic Workers, which sets the minimum age for engaging in domestic work at 18 years of age;
• information on the penalties envisaged;
• information on the number and nature of violations detected and the penalties imposed under the Regulation;
• a copy of the Domestic Workers Protection Bill, once adopted.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and removing them from these worst forms. Commercial sexual exploitation of children. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) between 2023 and 2025, three children were rescued from situations of commercial sexual exploitation; and (2) several villages have already adopted child-friendly policies in accordance with the “Child-friendly Tourism Villages” Guidelines, but challenges remain as other villages have not yet implemented such measures. The Committee notes, from the 2024 UNICEF Annual Report, that the Government developed, with UNICEF’s support, a roadmap for child online protection, as well as a National campaign for the prevention of online child sexual exploitation and abuse (#JagaBareng) which reached 55 million people in 2024 (and over 80 million since its launch in 2023).

The Committee notes, from the concluding observations of the CRC, the serious concerns: (1) about the limited implementation of Law No. 12 of 2022 concerning the Crime of Sexual Violence, as it requires the issuance of several derivative regulations for its effective implementation, of which only four have been promulgated to date; and (2) that the number of child victims who have accessed rehabilitation and reintegration services remains untraceable, as the Online Information System for the Protection of Women and Children lacks the capacity to track individual cases through the service pathway and integrated service hubs are not yet available nationwide (CRC/C/IDN/CO/5-6, para. 23). The Committee urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to identify and protect children under the age of 18 years from commercial sexual exploitation in the tourism sector and online sexual exploitation. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken in this regard, as well as on the number of children who have been removed from commercial sexual exploitation and rehabilitated. Lastly, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of the Guidelines on Child-friendly Tourism Villages in preventing children from engaging in commercial sexual exploitation.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.