Responding to sexual violence requires timely, appropriate and victim-centred action. Law enforcement officers and service providers therefore need the knowledge and skills to ensure that victims can access protection, services and justice at every stage of the response process.
To strengthen this capacity, the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (Kemen PPPA), together with the Legal Human Resources Development Agency (BPSDM Hukum) of the Ministry of Law, organised a Training of Trainers (ToT) on the Prevention and Response to Sexual Violence. The training was supported by the Australia–Indonesia Partnership Towards an Inclusive Society (INKLUSI) and the Australia–Indonesia Partnership for Justice Phase 3 (AIPJ3).
Over five days, 40 participants from a range of institutions took part in the training to deepen their understanding of victim-centred approaches to preventing and responding to sexual violence. Participants represented Kemen PPPA, BPSDM Hukum of the Ministry of Law, the Attorney General’s Office, the Supreme Court’s Directorate General of General Courts, the Regional Technical Implementation Units for the Protection of Women and Children (UPTD PPA) in Jakarta and West Java, as well as community-based service providers.
The training was particularly important as forms of sexual violence continue to evolve, including in digital spaces. Victims also come from diverse backgrounds and have different needs, including adult women, children, persons with disabilities and other groups facing heightened vulnerability.
Indra Gunawan, Expert Staff for Institutional Relations at Kemen PPPA, said sexual violence can have serious physical, psychological, social and economic impacts on victims.
“Victims of sexual violence are not only adult women, but also children, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups. For this reason, Kemen PPPA and BPSDM Hukum of the Ministry of Law have developed nine training modules on the prevention and response to sexual violence. These modules are designed to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement officers and service providers to ensure that victims’ rights are fulfilled at every stage of the response process,” Indra said.
The ToT forms part of the implementation of Presidential Regulation No. 9 of 2024 on Education and Training for the Prevention and Response to Sexual Violence. It also follows up on Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Regulation No. 2 of 2026 on Guidelines for the Delivery of Training on the Prevention and Response to Sexual Violence.
According to Indra, strong regulations must be supported by human resources capable of applying them in day-to-day service delivery.
“Through this ToT, we want to strengthen the protection system so that victims receive timely assistance, appropriate services and meaningful access to justice,” he said.
Connecting Services and the Justice System
Preventing and responding to sexual violence requires the involvement of many actors, including government institutions, law enforcement agencies, service providers and civil society organisations. Building a shared understanding and stronger coordination across institutions was therefore a key focus of the training.
The Australian Government’s support through INKLUSI and AIPJ3 is designed to strengthen interconnected parts of the protection system. INKLUSI supports stronger services and collaboration between government and civil society organisations from village to provincial level. AIPJ3 supports justice and security sector reform, including stronger cooperation between justice institutions and civil society organisations.
Elena Martin-Avila, First Secretary for Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion at the Australian Embassy, said law enforcement officers and service providers play an important role in ensuring that victims and survivors receive the support they need.
“Law enforcement officers and service providers are on the front line in ensuring that victims and survivors can access protection, services and justice. We hope this training will strengthen participants’ substantive and technical capacities, build a shared understanding, and improve collaboration among stakeholders,” Elena said.
Through the ToT approach, participants were equipped not only to apply what they had learned in their own work, but also to facilitate similar training within their institutions and regions. This will help extend understanding of victim-centred and non-discriminatory approaches to responding to sexual violence to more law enforcement officers and service providers.
INKLUSI continues to support a stronger and more inclusive protection system through collaboration between government and civil society organisations. This work seeks to ensure that everyone, particularly women, persons with disabilities and groups facing heightened vulnerability, has equal access to protection services and justice, while contributing to a more inclusive Indonesia free from violence.
