With Indonesia being a developing country, there is still a large number of women and teens with minimum knowledge of their reproductive system and pregnancy prevention. This lack of education and knowledge contributes to the number of babies being abandoned, and being found deceased. Many are rape and incest babies, deformed or disabled, or born into extreme poverty. This overwhelming issue has inspired Ibu Yulia to start an incredible foundation called the Bali Mother and Baby House.
A few years ago, Ibu Yulia lost her son due to a chronic disease. Her son always wished that he could set up a safe house for abandoned children. Because of his passing, she decided to make his dream come true.
Ibu Yulia, along with her friends Ibu Wiwin and Ibu Kris now rent a house in Dalung, Bali and has collaborated with an organisation in England that shares the same values and visions.
The services they provide include:
- Providing a safe house for abandoned pregnant women. Several times they have received pregnant women who have been neglected by their partners or families, and brought them to another organisation, Yayasan Bumi Sehat, when it’s time for delivery.
- Bridging the communication between pregnant women or their babies who might have psychological issues to the right organisation which can provide legal assistance or counseling. They also help children who are victims of pedophilia to get the rehabilitation they need from the right and legalised institutions.
- Giving one abandoned pregnant woman an opportunity to work to be able to pay the cost of her C-section labour she could not afford herself.
- Providing free child care for a year for a struggling single mother.
- Helping to find foster parents who can pay for a child’s education and will directly send the payment to the school they choose.
Currently they have eight abandoned children and some of them have psychological issues like ADHD. They work together with the Pusat Pemberdayaan Terpadu Pelayanan Perempuan (Centre for Integrated Women’s Services) to provide free counseling and help diagnose their disorders in order to give insight to the caregivers on how to raise them properly and suggest which school or education system will be appropriate for them and their special needs.
Bali Mother and Baby house is a heart-led project, basically nobody will be turned away – If they can’t assist they will find someone that can.
For more information and updates on their activities, visit their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/balimotherandbabyhouse/