Indonesia rights body urges probe after 2,000 fall ill from free school meals

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s leading human rights body has called for a police investigation into a series of food poisoning incidents linked to the government’s free school meals programme, with more than 2,000 students and teachers reported sick this week.

The Indonesian National Human Rights Commission, known as Komnas HAM, urged authorities on Friday to investigate outbreaks reported across several parts of the country. The incidents have been recorded on at least three major islands and have renewed concerns over food safety standards under President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship nutrition initiative.

Komnas HAM said access to safe food is a basic human right and warned that inadequate sanitation could undermine the legitimacy of the government’s efforts to tackle malnutrition. It also called on the National Nutrition Agency, which supervises the programme, to temporarily shut kitchens suspected of being responsible for the outbreaks.

Among the latest incidents, about 170 students and teachers in Tana Toraja in South Sulawesi became ill after consuming meals provided through the programme, according to local authorities. Another 256 students in an area of East Java were reportedly affected.

The latest cases follow more than 1,700 reported illnesses in Central Java, East Java and West Sumatra. Earlier incidents have been linked by officials to problems including improper food storage and delays in delivering prepared meals.

The National Nutrition Agency, which was due to brief the media on Friday, postponed its planned press conference without announcing a new date. Its chief, Sudaryono, said previously that the poisoning incidents would be dealt with seriously.

The scale of the problem appears to be significantly larger when earlier cases are included. Lawmaker Charles Honoris said health department figures showed around 50,000 people had been affected by food poisoning linked to the programme as of September 1.

The incidents have also increased public criticism of the initiative, which was introduced by Prabowo last year as part of efforts to improve nutrition among children. A July survey by Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting found that only about one-third of respondents were satisfied with the programme, with food poisoning among the concerns cited by those surveyed.