Indonesian lawmakers enacted a broad new criminal code that criminalizes sex outside of marriage, as part of a series of measures that critics believe directly threatens the Southeast Asian country’s human rights and freedoms.
The new law, which also applies to foreign residents and visitors, prohibits cohabitation before marriage and apostasy, and punishes insulting the president or expressing beliefs contrary to national ideology.
“All have agreed to ratify the (draft changes) into law. The old code belongs to Dutch heritage … and is no longer relevant,” said lawmaker Bambang Wuryanto who chaired the legislative commission charged with rewriting the colonial-era code.
Indonesia, the world’s biggest Muslim-majority country, has experienced a rise in religious conservatism in recent years. Strict Islamic rules are already in place in areas of the nation, notably the semi-autonomous Aceh province, which prohibits the sale of alcohol and gambling. In the region, public floggings are also practiced for a variety of transgressions, including homosexuality and adultery.
A previous draft of the law was scheduled to be enacted in 2019, but was postponed due to widespread protests, prompting Indonesian President Joko Widodo to intercede.
