31-8-2023 (JAKARTA) Ms Siti Mauliah, a resident of Mekar Sari village near Jakarta, vividly recalls the unsettling moment when she realized that the baby she brought home from the hospital was not her biological child. The distressing incident occurred over a year ago, when Ms Siti noticed that the baby had a fuller head of hair and rejected her attempts to breastfeed him. Moreover, the infant was not wearing the clothes she had packed for him. A subsequent investigation revealed that the hospital had mistakenly swapped her son with another boy born on the same day.
The two Indonesian families involved in this heart-wrenching mix-up are preparing for a significant reunion on September 29th. The toddlers, who have only known their current parents since their birth on July 18, 2022, will undergo a period of acclimatization to ease the trauma of separation.
Ms Siti’s suspicions were initially aroused when she discovered another woman’s name, Ms Dian Hartono, on the identity bracelet worn by the child approximately one week after bringing him home. However, when she approached the hospital staff to report the discrepancy, they dismissed her concerns, stating that only the bracelets had been switched, not the babies themselves. Undeterred, Ms Siti embarked on her own investigation and managed to locate Ms Dian, visiting her home four months later to share her findings. Astonishingly, Ms Dian denied the possibility of a mix-up, firmly believing that the baby she had taken home was her own as the bracelet he wore also bore her name.
Approximately a year after the birth of the babies, a lawyer named Mr Rusdi Ridho became aware of the case through word of mouth. He arranged for a DNA test, which ultimately confirmed Ms Siti’s suspicion that the baby was not hers. Subsequently, Mr Rusdi, from the Jakarta-based Sima Lawyers Attorney and Counsellor, alerted the police, who conducted cross-DNA tests on both babies and their respective parents.
On Monday, the police announced that the results had indeed confirmed a case of cradle-swapping at Sentosa Hospital in Bogor. The infants will be returned to their biological mothers on September 29th, following a gradual adjustment process.
This shocking incident involving Ms Siti serves as a poignant reminder of the lack of awareness about legal rights and the limited access to legal assistance faced by impoverished villagers in Indonesia. Mr Binsar Aritonang, the lawyer representing Ms Dian, expressed his client’s shock upon learning the results of the cross-DNA tests. He highlighted that Ms Dian and her husband had struggled for three years to conceive their first child. Meanwhile, Mr Jasra Putra, the vice-chairman of the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), expressed hope that this would be the first and last reported case of child swapping in the country, although observers suggest that there may have been unreported incidents in the past.
In response to inquiries from The Straits Times, Mr Gregorius Djako, a spokesperson for Sentosa Hospital in Bogor, stated that the hospital would compensate the affected families by providing scholarships for both children until they graduate from high school. Additionally, the hospital will offer free medical services to the children until they reach adolescence.
