Indonesia Ministry of Religious Affairs launches SafeKader training

The Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs (Kemenag) has launched the SafeKader training program to prevent and handle violence and sexual harassment within pesantren (Islamic boarding schools). The training is being conducted online via the Pintar Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform, with registration held from November 2 to 5, 2026, and sessions running from November 6 to 10, 2026.

Basnang Said, Director General of Pesantren at Kemenag, stated that the initiative aims to ensure pesantren remain safe and dignified environments for students. He emphasized that religious doctrine and authority must never be misused to justify violence. The SafeKader training is a component of the broader SAFESANTRI program, which includes five key policies: SafeNorma, SafeKader, SafeIndeks, SafeLapor, and SafeMitra.

The program targets pesantren caregivers, teachers, dormitory supervisors (musyrif and musyrifah), and educational staff. Yusi Damayanti, Director of Pesantren Empowerment, noted that creating child-friendly pesantren requires systemic changes in parenting and governance, rather than just addressing individual cases or regulations.