LEGAL PROTECTION FOR CHILD VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Abstract

The increasing cases of Domestic Violence against children indicate a disconnect between regulation and the implementation of child protection in Indonesia. Although the Government has enacted Law No. 35 of 2014 concerning Amendments to Law No. 23 of 2002, both preventive and repressive legal protections remain suboptimal in reducing violence rates. This study aims to analytically examine the forms of legal protection for child victims of domestic violence and identify the determinant factors causing such violence from a juridical perspective. The research method employed is normative legal research with statutory and conceptual approaches. The findings reveal that legal protection for child victims of domestic violence encompasses the fulfillment of restitution rights, psychosocial rehabilitation, and specialized legal assistance. Economic factors and family disharmony are identified as the primary triggers of violence. This study concludes that the current child protection mechanisms remain confined to a formalistic approach. The normative implication suggests a need for strengthened synchronization between the Child Protection Law and the Domestic Violence Elimination Law (UU PKDRT), alongside an expansion of the state's obligation to guarantee absolute fundamental rights for children to ensure legal certainty and more comprehensive protection for children as vulnerable legal subjects.