Under the country's new criminal code, having sex outside of marriage will be punishable by...
Digital Desk: Sex outside marriage and live-in relationships may soon be banned in Indonesia, as the Muslim country plans to make historical changes to its criminal code as part of legal reform, senior officials said.
Among the code, revisions are changes to articles that would penalize sex outside of marriage with up to a year in prison and outlaw cohabitation between unmarried couples.
The new regulations outlaw criticizing the president and expressing opinions at odds with the Pancasila, the country's political philosophy.
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, and Bambang Wuryanto, head of the parliamentary commission in charge of the revision, said on Monday that a plenary session of parliament would be held on Tuesday to ratify the revised law, according to Reuters.
While revised articles on sex outside marriage and cohabitation state that such complaints can be made by close relatives such as a spouse, parent, or children, insulting the president can only be made by the president.
Notably, the country's penal code overhaul has been in the works for decades and has recently been the subject of large-scale protests. Prior to this, a plan to develop a new code in September 2019 was postponed because of widespread protests over threats to civil liberties.
Continue Reading
