Despite objections from human rights activists, lawmakers in Indonesia on Tuesday, December 06, 2022 approved a significant revision to the country’s penal code, making premarital sex illegal by up to a year in jail.
![Indonesia, "world's third-largest democracy", outlaws premarital sex, blasphemy and defamation of the president [also, not mentioned in article, outlaws expression of views that challenge official state ideology of Pancasila] : r/stupidpol](https://external-preview.redd.it/indonesia-worlds-third-largest-democracy-outlaws-premarital-v0-GV05EtIvnIGMzS4ifS-pBgQdMdo9_ZB1aYD5Ctohdq8.jpg?auto=webp&s=2d7b048bbfeb6b15a6ed4b572078f06508f2c6af)
The new law, which will go into force in three years and apply to both Indonesian citizens and foreign tourists, outlaws all sexual contact with those who are not married and forbids unmarried couples from cohabiting, a violation that carries a six-month prison sentence.
The Associated Press, however, was able to obtain a copy of the updated criminal law, and it states that only close relatives, such as a spouse, parent, or child, will be permitted to file such complaints with the police.
All political parties in the parliament agreed with the bill. Additionally, it makes it unlawful to advocate for contraception, as well as to disrespect the president or state institutions, hold unlicensed protests, and propagate ideas that are in opposition to the ideology of the country with a majority of Muslims.
READ ALSO: Dutch Author: Pope John Paul II Covered Up Child Abuse While Serving As A Bishop
When the new code was first presented in 2019, it was met with ferocious opposition from tens of thousands of protesters who said the legislation threatened their right to privacy and freedom of expression.
Despite some of the bill’s provisions being softened by parliamentarians, human rights advocates have denounced it as a significant “setback” for what is thought to be the third-largest democracy in the world.
As the nation continues a gradual recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak, Maulana Yusran, deputy chief of Indonesia’s tourism industry board, criticised the new regulation as “completely counter-productive.” She said that it will have a significant detrimental impact.
The Indonesian Tourism Association had earlier predicted that by 2025, the number of international visitors to popular vacation spots like Bali will equal their pre-pandemic levels of six million per year.
The new code may result in less foreign investment, tourism, and travel to Indonesia, according to Sung Kim, the US ambassador there. He said that “criminalising the personal decisions of individuals would loom large within the decision matrix of many companies determining whether to invest in Indonesia.”
The new regulations, according to Albert Aries, a spokesman for Indonesia’s Justice Ministry, are meant to “protect the institution of marriage and Indonesian values.”
