Indonesia bans premarital intercourse, insulting President in new legal code

Indonesia’s parliament on Tuesday permitted a brand new legal code that can make intercourse outdoors of marriage punishable by as much as a 12 months in jail.

New Delhi,UPDATED: Dec 6, 2022 13:39 IST

Indonesia has seen an increase in spiritual conservatism lately (Photo: Reuters)

By India Today Web Desk: Indonesia has handed a controversial new legal code that features outlawing premarital intercourse and cohabitation, in modifications that critics contend might undermine freedoms within the Southeast Asian nation.

The new legal guidelines apply to each Indonesians and foreigners and in addition restore a ban on insulting the president, state establishments, or Indonesia’s nationwide ideology often known as Pancasila.

The new legal code, which was unanimously permitted by parliament, replaces a framework that had been in place since Indonesia’s independence in 1946.

“We have tried our best to accommodate the important issues and different opinions which were debated. However, it is time for us to make a historical decision on the penal code amendment and to leave the colonial criminal code we inherited behind,” Yasonna Laoly, minister of legislation and human rights, informed parliament forward of the vote, the Independent reported.

The proposed new legislation sparked student-led protests when a full draft was launched in September 2019, amid fears it could curtail private freedoms. At least 300 folks had been damage within the unrest, which was additionally fueled by issues that new legal guidelines would undermine the combat in opposition to corruption.

Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation, has seen a rise in spiritual conservatism lately. Strict Islamic legal guidelines are already in place in components of the nation, together with the semi-autonomous Aceh province, the place alcohol and playing are prohibited. Public floggings are additionally practised within the area for quite a lot of offences, together with homosexuality and adultery.

A earlier draft of the code was scheduled to be handed in 2019, however was postponed because of widespread protests, prompting Indonesian President Joko Widodo to intervene.

(With company enter)

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Published On:

Dec 6, 2022