After Nearly a Decade Long Battle, Sexual Violence Bill Passed in Indonesia

14/04/2022

Jayantika Rao Tiruvaloor Viavoori

Women’s Rights Researcher

Global Human Rights Defence

 After years of campaigning, women’s rights activists welcome the approval of the anticipated Sexual Violence Bill in Indonesia. On April 12, the Indonesian House of Representatives passed the bill to combat sex crimes and provide a more robust legal framework for victims. The bill aims to tackle “sexual violence against women and children, physical assault, non-physical sexual harassment, forced conception, forced sterilisation, forced marriages, sexual torture, sexual exploitation, sexual slavery and circulating sexual content without consent online” (Strangio, 2022). The all-encompassing nature of the bill gives law enforcement agencies legal privileges to deal with and protect women against violence. Additionally, the law was created to handle sexual violence from prevention to victim recovery, focused on aiding the victims.

Women’s rights activists are pleased with the bill as it will broaden the definition of sexual violence and remove the loopholes that existed during the old framework. The law was provoked by the numerous publicised sexual violence cases that rocked the country in the last few months. The near decade long delay of the sexual violence bill was mainly due to the resistance from religious conservatives. The conservative Muslim party, known as PKS, again rejected the bill as it did not prohibit extramarital affairs and ‘deviant sexual orientations’ homosexual relations (Widianto, 2022). 

As the bill is set to bring justice to numerous victims (men, women, and children), its enforcement must be monitored closely. Nevertheless, the bill is not entirely perfect as the scope is limited since it only mentions certain sex crimes while also omitting a specific clause for rape. Therefore, the bill would need to be revised in the future, especially after the amendments to the Criminal Code. However, it must be recognised as a positive step in eliminating violence against women while promoting social and cultural changes. 

Sources and Further Reading

Karmini, Niniek. (2022, April 12). Indonesia Passes Sexual Violence Law amid Growing Cases. ABC News. Retrieved 14 April from https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/indonesia-passes-sexual-violence-law-amid-growing-cases-84028353

Strangio, Sebastian. (2022, April 13). Indonesian Parliament Passes Long-Awaited Sexual Violence Bill. The Diplomat. Retrieved 14 April from https://thediplomat.com/2022/04/indonesian-parliament-passes-long-awaited-sexual-violence-bill/

Widianto, Stanley. (2022, April 12). Indonesia’s parliament passes landmark bill on sexual violence. Reuters. Retrieved 14 April from https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/indonesias-parliament-passes-landmark-bill-sexual-violence-2022-04-12/