Holy Spirit Sister Sesilia Ketut (centre) The Catholic Church in Indonesia has joined a government sponsored awareness campaign to combat human trafficking as well as violence against women and children.
A third central aim is to promote economic justice throughout the sprawling archipelago.
The campaign, entitled the ‘3 Ends’, commenced in March 2016 in provincial capitals.
Yohana Yembise, Minister of Female Empowerment and Child Protection, said that some 24 million Indonesian women face psychological and physical abuse as well as sexual violence or exploitation.
Rianti, 36, one of the millions of women who have been victims of violence, welcomed the campaign.
However, she believed that it should be conducted at the neighbourhood level so that people learn about rights and obligations, in particular that husbands should not act violently towards their wives and children.
Holy Spirit Sister Sesilia Ketut [pictured], chairwoman of Forum for Women and Children in Atambua, West Timor, said many women in this region of Indonesia are treated violently by their husbands or brothers.
“Every day we receive reports of at least four women being abused,” Sister Ketut said.