The Indonesian parliament is ready to pass a series of laws that will significantly limit the private life of citizens. Sex outside marriage will be prohibited and the penalties will be harsh: one year in prison for those caught red-handed. Freedom of expression, especially in the political field, will also be reduced to the bone and any negative comment against government leaders will not be tolerated. On December 15, if not sooner, the approval of a new version of the penal code, a more conservative and rigid version, will be discussed in the courtroom. The Deputy Minister of Justice Edward Omar Sharif Hiariejpromoter of the draft, speaks with satisfaction of the work done: “Regulations finally in line with Indonesian values”.
Indonesia, the first female executioner: whipping of a girl who had sex outside of marriage
Raimondo Bultrini
The previous one from 2019
This time however, unlike in 2019, there was no protest in the square. In fact, three years ago there was a first attempt by the government to Joko Widodogreat protagonist of the last G20 of Bali, to legislate on the issue of free sex, but a large part of the population opposed it by expressing their dissent. Dozens of young people, especially students, were injured during the clashes with the Indonesian police who, at the first stone thrown, responded with tear gas and water cannons.
What does the reform foresee?
The new version of the code provides for a prison sentence of up to one year for those convicted of having sex outside of marriage. The law states that the accusation may be formulated by a small group of people, mostly family members. In the case of adultery, on the other hand, the injured party, man or woman, can go to the police station to file a complaint against the relative. Cohabitation before the fateful “Yes, I do” will be prohibited and will become punishable by a prison term of up to 6 months.
Not only rules of the private sphere, the legal reform will introduce penalties that will also undermine freedom of expression. It will in fact be forbidden to go against the ideology of the state or to have opinions that do not align with the guidelines dictated by the institutions and by morality. Insulting the president Joko Widodo could cost up to 3 years in prison.
New rules also for foreigners
But if thousands of kilometers away the news makes people turn up their noses, the Indonesian population now seems accustomed to these continuous “intimidation tactics”. Princess, a 23-year-old girl born in the capital, is in a stable relationship with one of her peers. You speak of the reform without fear, as if it were something that doesn’t really concern you. “Laws like these are not new in Indonesia. Usually they die in the bud, but in this case it seems almost decided by now. I am sure, however, that the penalties will not be applied”.
Eldest daughter, Putri has a younger brother. Her parents, in an 87% Muslim population, are not religious and own tourist resorts. “Those who will be most affected will be the poorest segments of the population, with little access to education and more linked to religion”, says the girl, specifying that “no educated or sensible parent would ever report a child”. According to the British agency Reuters, the rules will also be applied to international tourists causing investors to fear. But even on the all-Western psychosis Putri seems to have clear ideas: “The media make the news viral by creating anxieties and fears but, like everything else, this reform will also be dienticate. People will eventually pass over it”.
Indonesia, earthquake in Java: at least 162 dead
by the Foreign editorial staff
Certainly the legislation of such a private and intimate sphere marks a notable step backwards in the field of human rights. As of June 2022 the parliament of Jakarta he had given the green light to a law that sanctioned the crime of sexual violence for the first time in Indonesia’s constitutional history. In the law, after a long debate, the paragraph concerning extramarital relations had been spared: now the coup de grace. Meanwhile Andreas Harrison, Indonesian activist of the NGO Human Rights Watch, said he was concerned about the possible approval and will participate in the debate in parliament next week. Putri, despite the clouds on her horizon, says she is determined to live her love life in a free and serene way: “We both thought about marriage but it won’t be a law that will put me in a hurry”.