In response to this, the government through the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology issued a Ministry Regulation No 30 Year 2021 on the Prevention and Management of Sexual Assault (PPKS). This PPKS issue became the main theme of the General Lecture KU-4078 Studium Generale with Olivia Chadidjah Salampessy as the Deputy Head of the National Commission of Women on Wednesday (2/11/2022).

In his early presentation, Olivia showed the National Commission of Women's annual record data for the 2012-2021 period. The data recorded 2.247.594 violence cases towards women, including sexual violence with an increasing trend every year. Specific for the sexual violence cases that occurred in an educational environment, in the 2015-2021 period the National Commission for Women recorded a total of 67 cases with 35 of those cases happened in universities.

Olivia added, "In our record, sexual violence in universities generally utilizes the authority relation of a lecturer as a final project and research supervisor with modus of inviting the victim to another town and committing sexual assault both physically or non-physically during the final project supervising session."

According to her, almost all sexual violence victims experienced physical trauma. This condition has a broad impact on the victim's life including on her learning experience. Some of the victims even resorted to ending their own life because of that prolonged trauma. This is worsened by the social construct that is heavily rooted in a patriarchal culture and in turn causing women to be in a position where they become marginalized subordinates.

"Sexual violence is caused by our societal view on women, where women are considered a 'property', objectification on the women body, and women being considered as a 'weaker gender'. Because of those conditions that make women vulnerable, sexual violence happened," explained Olivia.

Efforts to Prevent Sexual Assault in Higher Education

Responding to this increase in sexual violence, especially in higher education, the government issued a regulation and legal certainty through the Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry Regulation No 30 Year 2021. This regulation mandated the development of a university environment that is comfortable and conducive for all of its constituents.

The endeavors to prevent sexual violence on campus are carried out through learning activities, management improvement, and strengthening the culture of the students, educators, and educational staff. While the endeavors to solve sexual violence are carried out through four steps: assistance for the victim, victim protection, victim physical and psychological rehabilitation, and administrative sanction for the perpetrator.

"In addition to this preventing and solving endeavors, this nation has already provided various institutions and task forces to coordinate and monitor how far this PPKS prevention and solving has been carried out," said Olivia.

As a behavior that occurs in a social community, sexual violence cases can be controlled and prevented by the member of the social community itself through simple steps. Moreover, family as the closest environment should act as the place for education, moral strengthening, and a good communicational environment for all of its family members. With good supervision by all members of the community and the presence of the government inside, violence cases especially sexual violence that happen in higher education can be prevented optimally.

Reporter: Hanifa Juliana (District and City Planning, 2020)
Translator: Favian Aldilla R (Civil Engineering, 2019)