Children of Indonesia face poverty and destitution on a daily basis. We recently joined in the fight to save the children in this country. According to UNICEF:
Tsunami recovery is continuing with construction of new permanent homes and schools and repair/replacement of other infrastructure elements.
Routine immunization coverage has deteriorated in the last few years.
Indonesia's HIV/AIDS crisis threatens to become a full-blown epidemic.
Malaria strikes up to 20 per cent of Indonesians.
Approximately 28 per cent of children under the age of five are malnourished.
More than 100 million people lack adequate sanitation, and more than 40 million people do not have access to safe drinking water sources.
Nationally, primary school enrolment rates are over 90 per cent and junior secondary enrollment rates are over 60 per cent, with no gender gap.
Human trafficking is a serious problem. Each year, thousands of women and children fall victim to trafficking, including being forced or lured into the commercial sex trade.
There are nearly 3 million children in the labor force, many in dangerous occupations.
The House of Mercy in Bali was started in November 2000. The first eight children in the orphanage were victims of the fighting that took place between Christians and Muslims in 2000 on the island of Ambon. Within one year, the orphanage had grown to having 15 children, many of whose lives had been shaken by the devastating fighting in Ambon and others from a severely impoverished neighborhood in Kupang. The last children to come into the home were from families who had been victims of religious persecution from their Hindu neighbors. The House of Mercy's vision is to nurture, educate, and give guidance to the children so that they might become influential people in Indonesia and have futures full of hope.
Mem's Complex
City: Sentani, Papua
Mem's Complex is a community
center that began ten years ago
when the Yosts started a rehab center
in Sentani. The rehab center has grown
into an entire community development
complex with a rehab center, a women's crisis shelter, a children's shelter, a health clinic,
and several businesses to help employ those living in the shelters. The children's
shelter originally began to help house some of the children that came along with those
entering either rehab or the crisis shelter. Each child receives love, shelter, clothing,
food, medical attention, and an education.
New Family Home
City: Merauke, Papua
The New Family Home (Rumah Keluarga Generasi Baru) is a branch of a ministry based in Jayapura, Papua. Last August (2005), Yusep, Bibi, and their three daughters moved to Merauke from Jayapura. Yusep and Bibi's story is one of redemption. When they first met people from Mem's Complex they only had two children and were struggling financially. Yusep was a construction worker until an accident made it impossible for him to continue working. Bibi was not able to read or write. Both of them joined the school for job training run at Mem's Complex. Yusep is now a wood carver who trains other young men to collect discarded pieces of coconut shells, treat them, carve them, and create sellable items. Bibi can now read and write and while in Sentani, she was in charge of the literacy program at Mem's Complex until their family decided to move to Merauke.
The original plan was to start a literacy program and a wood carving business for children on the streets in Merauke. They rented a large four bedroom home for $500 US a year and got to work. Within a month, they had 13 kids ranging from ages 6-18 years old living with them. The children came because they were drawn to the family atmosphere of the home. Over the past few months, Yusep and Bibi have worked to teach the kids how to read and write so they can re-enroll in school. Together as a house, they are learning what it means to be a new family.
