Jakarta, 12 April — Indonesia has passed a landmark bill that, for the first time, outlaws forced marriage and sexual harassment. This marks a significant milestone in safeguarding human rights.
The House of Representatives passed this legislation yesterday, rendering Indonesian women with legal protection from nine forms of sexual violence.
The new law includes 15-year prison sentences for sexual exploitation, nine years for forced marriage and four years for circulating non-consensual sexual content; convicted offenders must also compensate victims, who are entitled to counseling.
The law was proposed by the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) and civil society groups 10 years ago. It was first deliberated by the House of Representatives in 2016.
This legal milestone emerges in response to a concerning surge in violence against women in Indonesia. In 2021 alone, Komnas Perempuan documented 338,496 cases, a significant increase from the 220,000 cases reported in 2020.
Indonesia's adoption of a law against sexual violence signifies a triumph for human rights and gender equality.
Source: Cahya, Gemma. The Guardian. "Joy as Indonesia passes bill outlawing sexual abuse and forced marriage". https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/apr/13/indonesia-passes-bill-outlawing-sexual-abuse-gender-violence-forced-marriage?CMP=share_btn_link. 13 April, 2022. [Accessed: 14 April, 2022].
Edited by Manan Chordia.
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