Yogyakarta – Hundreds of mothers held a symbolic action by banging cooking utensils as a form of protest against the implementation of the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program which has recently resulted in thousands of school children suffering food poisoning.
Through the action titled "Kenduri Suara Ibu Indonesia" (Feast of the Voice of Indonesian Mothers), the mothers urged President Prabowo Subianto to stop his flagship program and conduct a total re-evaluation. "The mothers here are demanding an end to the free nutritious meals. Mothers never remain silent when their children are harmed", said one of the speakers.
Meanwhile, another speaker criticised the MBG's menu that includes hamburgers, which are considered ultra-processed foods. "There's not even a hamburger on the menu in the song Du Di Dam", she said, referring to a popular 1997 children's song about food and friendship.
Another speaker highlighted the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) as the organiser of the MBG, which in structural terms is filled with Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel, not nutritionists.
A number of retired TNI officers are listed as holding positions within the BGN. According to bgn.go.id, these retired TNI officers hold positions ranging from the BGN deputy head to the principle secretary and central inspectorate.
"These soldiers are used to eating canned food, they don't know about proper nutrition. Stop the MBG and conduct a transparent evaluation", she said. "Stop eating free poison", the participants shouted in unison.
Writer-activist, Kalis Mardiasih, who was present as an activist for Suara Ibu Indonesia (Indonesian Mothers' Voices), said that the peaceful action was attended by mothers from activist groups, artists, academics and social organisation in Yogyakarta and its surroundings.
"We have gathered to express the limit of our patience with the extraordinary situation of mass poisoning incidents that have occurred as a result of the MBG priority programs in various regions in Indonesia", said Mardiasih.
According to the Indonesian Education Monitoring Network (JPPI) and the Centre for Indonesia's Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI), the number of victims has exceeded 5,000 children. According to Mardiasih this is not just a number. For her, this concerns children's lives and the future of the nation.
The victims are schoolchildren who have been lovingly cared for since they were born. Parents are dismayed to see their kindergarten-aged children suffering in pain. Pregnant women and even teachers who have been asked to taste MBG have also fallen victim.
The mothers' unease also includes the tax money they pay for the education sector, but which is instead it is allocated for the MBG program.
It is hoped that the sounds from these cooking utensils will be heard loudly and serve as a warning to the government, the BGN and the president for the sake of the continued growth and development of a healthy and happy generation.
"Striking these pots declares that the symbol, that efforts to meet children's nutritional needs that up until now have been provided by families, and everything has been okay, because the MBG priority program has been taken over by the state arbitrarily, in a centralised manner, management that is centralised and militarised without any connection to the state's existing nutritional programs", she explained.
Through the action, the mothers also voiced five demands including:
1. Halting the centralised and militaristic MBG priority program.
2. Accountability on the part of the president, the BGN, Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG) and the organisers of MBG kitchens, which have caused thousands of children to suffer food poisoning throughout January-September 2025.
3. That the BGN form a fact-finding team to investigate these mass poisoning cases, demanding transparency in the disclosure of cases (according to the mandate of the Health Law) and providing the right of rehabilitation to the victims.
4. That the government investigate the practices of rent seeking and corruption in the MBG program funded by the state and put an end to these practices.
5. Returning the role of fulfilling children's nutrition to the community and regions.
(kum/dal)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Ratusan Ibu di Jogja Aksi Pukul Panci Desak Setop MBG Militeristik".]
