Child sexual abuse targets more to boys than girls, the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) said on Monday.

Citing reports that were filed with the commission, the KPAI said the majority of victims in the cases of child sexual abuse that were reported in the first two months of the year were male children.

KPAI chairman Susanto said the commission received 223 reports of sexual abuse against male children from January to February. Jambi recorded the highest number with 80 cases involving boys and Tangerang, Banten, ranking second with 45 cases. These were followed by South Tapanuli, North Sumatra, with 42 cases, Aceh (26 cases), Karanganyar, Central Java (17), Banyumas, East Java (7) and Tasikmalaya, West Java (6).

“[The records] show that boys are just as vulnerable as girls. Hence, we need to implement stronger protection for boys, too,” Susanto said on Monday, as quoted by kompas.com.

KPAI commissioner Retno Listyarsi said the cases occurred mainly at educational institutions, while the majority of perpetrators were elementary and junior high school teachers. “The abuse occurred within school premises, such as in toilets, classrooms, student organization (OSIS) offices and even in musholla (prayer rooms),” she said.

Convicted child abusers may face up to 15 years in jail or a fine of up to Rp 5 billion (US$363,500) under the 2014 Child Protection Law. However, if the abuser was also underage, they would be charged under Law No. 11/2012 on the Juvenile Criminal Justice System.

Susanto said the commission would oversee the court process for underage perpetrators of child sexual abuse. "This is to ensure the correct judicial procedure," he said. (srs/ebf)