Unpacking children’s participation in FAD Mojosari, Central Java, Indonesia: An institutionalized children’s space in the development process

This paper explores the factors which caused the Child Forum in Mojosari village (FAD Mojosari), Central Java, Indonesia to become an institutionalized space. I argue that the notion of children being seen as becoming, enables the establishment of the Child Forum through top-down approaches. This qualitative research uses semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and candid non-participant observation in order to understand the factors of the institutionalization of children’s participation space. It is supported by the norms in which children need to respect adults and girls are more protected than boys. Beside the norms, the legacy of the centralized governmental system in Indonesia and the intervention of the Yes I Do program influences how the Child Forum is established, reorganized, and included in the structure of the adult organization which created the Child Forum. Nevertheless, in the limited space of participation, children enact their participation by negotiating their position towards adults. This paper does not seek to evaluate whether children’s participation in the Child Forum has failed or is a success, rather it identifies the factors which weaken and/or strengthen children’s participation. Therefore, it may encourage the improvement of it based on its surrounding social context.