(CNN) — Indonesia’s parliament unanimously approved Tuesday a sweeping new penal code that criminalizes sexual relations outside of marriageas part of a series of changes that critics say threaten human rights and freedoms in the Southeast Asian country.
The new code, which also applies to foreign residents and tourists, prohibits cohabitation before marriage, apostasy and provides for punishment for insulting the president or expressing opinions contrary to national ideology.
“Everyone agreed to ratify (the preliminary changes) into law,” said lawmaker Bambang Wuryanto, who headed the parliamentary commission charged with revising the colonial-era code. “The old code belongs to the Dutch heritage… and is no longer relevant.”
The world’s largest Muslim-majority nation, Indonesia, has seen a rise in religious conservatism in recent years. Strict Islamic laws already apply in parts of the country, including the semi-autonomous province of Aceh, where alcohol and gambling are prohibited. Public floggings also take place in the region for a variety of crimes including homosexuality and adultery.
The changes to the penal code have not only alarmed human rights advocates, who have warned of their potential to stifle personal liberties, but also representatives of the travel industry, who have worried regarding their possible effect on tourism.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly said it was not easy for a multicultural and multi-ethnic country to make a penal code that “suits all interests.”
He said he hoped Indonesians would understand that lawmakers had done their best to accommodate “public aspiration,” and invited dissatisfied parties to submit judicial review to the constitutional court.
Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, human rights groups and critics warned that the new code would “disproportionately affect women” and further reduce human rights and freedoms in the country of more than 270 million people.
“What we are witnessing is a huge setback for Indonesia’s hard-won progress in protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms following the 1998 revolution. This penal code should never have been passed in the first place,” Usman said. Hamid, executive director of Amnesty International Indonesia.
What does the penal code say?
The new penal code is 200 pages long and has been in the making for years.
An earlier draft was scheduled to pass in 2019, but the vote was postponed following thousands of protesters, mostly students, took to the streets demanding the government withdraw it.
In a televised address at the time, President Joko Widodo said he would delay the vote following “seriously considering comments from different parties who object to some substantial content of the penal code.”
Amnesty International’s Hamid noted that no “significant changes” have been enacted since 2019.
Under the version approved Tuesday, sexual relations outside of marriage carry a possible one-year prison sentence, although there are restrictions on who can file a formal complaint. For example, parents of children who cohabit before marriage have the authority to report them.
In addition to introducing new crimes, the code also expands existing laws and penalties. Blasphemy laws have been increased from “one to six provisions” and can now lead to a maximum sentence of five years in prison, according to a draft document.
Hamid said laws on insulting the country’s leaders and unauthorized protests will have a “chilling effect” on free speech.
“Reinstating provisions prohibiting insults to the president and vice president, the incumbent government, and state institutions would create a palpable chilling effect on free speech and criminalize legitimate criticism,” he said.
Andreas Harsono, a researcher at Human Rights Watch Indonesia, called the laws “a setback for Indonesia’s already declining religious freedom,” warning they might be misused to target certain people.
“The danger of oppressive laws is not that they are broadly enforced, but that they provide an avenue for selective enforcement,” he said.
Hadi Rahmat Purnama, from the University of Indonesia’s law school, said the laws will be implemented following a three-year transition period.
foreigners and tourists
The laws are expected to unsettle the business community, especially those who regularly receive and serve foreign nationals and tourists.
The island of Bali, for example, is heavily reliant on tourism revenue and is still reeling from the slowdown from the pandemic that kept travelers away.
Putu Winastra, president of the Association of Indonesian Travel and Tourism Agencies (ASITA) in Bali, told CNN the laws would “make foreigners think twice” before visiting Indonesia.
“From our point of view as players in the tourism industry, this law will be very problematic,” Putu said, questioning how the laws would be enforced.
“Should we ask (unmarried couples abroad) if they are married or not? Do tourist couples have to prove they are married?” she asked.
Putu said the laws might be “counterproductive” to any effort to attract tourists to the island.
“If these laws are actually implemented later, tourists might be (put) in jail and this will hurt tourism,” he said.
