S Sarwono

Indonesian Youth S Sarwono

Youth is a stage of life every individual experiences: a period characterized by spontaneous, adventurous, non-conservative, changeable, and rebellious acts. This book discusses the Indonesian youth, their identity, and their issues. The first chapter gives a sketch of the youth in Jakarta, the trend-setters of the Indonesian youth, their appearance, language, and lifestyle. The sketch is obtained from discussions with different groups of youth and adults (parents) in Jakarta. A retrospective study compares the portrait of the youth of today and the youth from the past. Part two discusses an issue faced by many Indonesian teenage girls. Indonesia's prevalence of child marriage is alarming. It ranks seventh in the world. Young girls are forced to marry and denied the rights for education. Dependency on the husband makes them vulnerable to abuse. Poverty is the most common reason for marrying young beside interpretation of religion, social stigma (shame), avoiding premarital sex and unplanned pregnancy. There are contradictions in the pluralistic legal system between the Marriage Law, Child Protection Law, Islamic and adat laws. Child wives are powerless, invisible and voiceless.