Child actors, are they protected?

The glittering world of cinema is like a double-edged sword that often inflicts unpleasant experience on child actors. We often read stories of child actors experiencing stress from the demands of the job they have to bear at a young age, one of whom is Arumi Bachsin.

In 2010, Arumi was reported to have run away from home, allegedly from the result of depression she suffered because she was deprived of freedom as a teen. Arumi also confessed to former KPAI chairman Hadi Supeno that she felt that she was always forced, tired and depressed.

There are numerous cases of economic exploitation towards child actors, such as those experienced by Misca Fortuna, the actor who played Mancung in Emak Ijah Pengen ke Mekah. When she was still starring in the series, her late father Muhammad Delsy allegedly embezzled Misca’s hard earned money amounting to Rp100,000,000. As a result, Misca’s mother reported her father to the police for alleged theft.

Unfortunately, economic exploitation, especially towards child actors, still don’t garner much attention. Even though acting can be categorised as a means of channeling a child’s interest and talent, it could be called an act of economic exploitation when it violates a child’s rights.

Basically, the nature of a child is to play, rest and create according to their interest and talents for self-development. To work as an actor, surely there are many things to consider.

To be able to work according to their interest and talents, every child who undertake jobs must fulfill the terms stipulated in Article 2 paragraph 2 of Manpower Ministerial Decree (Kepmenaker) No.115/2004:

The job must be familiar to the child since early age;
Align with the child’s interest;
In accordance with the child’s abilities; and
The job must be able to develop creativity and is in line with children’s world.

The involvement of children in a job must also take into account the best interest of the child. The interest must be realised by listening to the child’s opinion and avoid hampering the child’s physical, mental, intellectual and social growth. Also, the child must continue receiving education and is free from coercion (according to Article 3 paragraph (2) of Kepmenaker 115/2004).

To further discuss the job of a child actor on the field, The Finery Report interviewed Mawar*, an artist manager who asked to remain anonymous. The youngest actress she had worked with was 15 years old.

*not real name

She shared her experience in handling child actors, saying that the problem that often surfaces is how to balance work, personal life and school. This is not an easy feat. In addition, social life often becomes an issue influencing the growth of a child actor.

“For everyday lives, even though they have their parents to supervise, the child must still be provided with understanding and boundaries,” said Mawar.

Regarding economic exploitation of child actors in the entertainment world, she stated, "It actually hasn’t been stated as a form of exploitation by child protection agencies or state law, but the truth is there have been many cases that are going to that direction.”

The definition of economic exploitation is explained in the Child Protection Law. The elucidation of Article 66 of Law No.35/2014 stated that economic exploitation is an action carried out with or without the consent of the child that uses the child's energy or ability by other parties to obtain material benefits.

One example is working hours that exceed the average adult. Mawar explained, “This is actually very ambiguous because according to my experience at work, working hours are not clearly regulated. There is no legal entity that regulates a maximum working hours per week for a child. Usually it is only based on an agreement between the talent management and the production house.”

In terms of income management, Mawar explained that usually, the parents, as the party who manages the child's income, will give the child a monthly allowance. In her experience, the child usually does not mind if the money they earned is used to help meet the needs of their family.

From the legal perspective, working hours are regulated in the Labour Law. Article 69 paragraph (2) explained that a child is allowed to work for a maximum of 3 hours and the job can only be done during the day without disturbing the child's school hours.

However, this may be difficult to understand because rules related to child protection are scattered in various laws and regulations, while rules that specifically manage children's income do not exist.

The Labour Law detailed requirements for businesses that employs children, namely: (summary of CHAPTER X Article 2 on children)

The child must be 13-15 years old;
The job does not hinder the child’s mental, physical and social development and health;
Obtain written permission from the parents or guardian;
Having a work agreement between the employer and parents or guardian;
Have a clear work relationship;
Paying attention to the child’s occupational safety and health;
The child receives pay in accordance with the regulations.

Children aged below 15 are only allowed to work for a maximum of three hours a day and 12 hours a week. Also, they must work outside of school hours and accompanied by parents or guardians. Employers are also required to provide resting facilities during the waiting time.

Kepmenaker No.235/2003 states that children shall be prohibited from taking up a job and or being employed in a job that jeopardise their morals, such as work in bars, discos, karaoke, billiards, massage parlors, or locations of prostitution. In addition, children should not take up job as a model for alcohol, sexual stimulant, or cigarette products.

In reality, child actors are not only involved in movies, but also in drama series with many episodes, especially stripped series. In the regulation, children are not allowed to work between 18:00 and 06:00 and work overtime. However, the reality is different. Therefore, specific regulations that can balance the interest and give legal certainty to child actors and production houses are needed.

Child actors are not only vulnerable to economic exploitation, but also sexual exploitation. Mawar also shared the experience of a child talent who nearly suffered sexual harassment because they were invited to work outside the city without parental supervision.

If we look closely, the characters in foreign series, such as Gossip Girl, Elite and Wild Girl, are usually played by older actors. Casting director Todd Thaler explained that this is due to the limitations on working hours of children set by the law. The limit on working hours for children is very strict and ultimately limit the time that the producer has.

Other factors, such as the children’s characteristics and work ethics, also influence the casting. Therefore, most casting directors choose to work with actors who are at least 18 years old because they can work longer hours.

The existing regulations are actually sufficient to provide adequate protection, but law enforcement and education for the public are needed.

Not less crucial is a regulation to solve cases similar to that of Misca Mancung. As a comparison, California has the California Child Actor's Bill or Coogan Law which requires employers to deduct 15% of the child's gross income and deposit it into a blocked trust account within 15 working days. This regulation was created following the case of child actor Jackie Coogan, which is similar with Misca Mancung’s case, in which the money he earned as a child actor were squandered by his parents.