Indonesia’s new laws violate privacy-UN
2022.12.09 02:24
Indonesia’s new laws violate privacy-UN
Budrigannews.com – The United Nations has warned that Indonesia’s new criminal code could undermine press freedom, privacy, and human rights in the world’s third-largest democracy. The revised laws could also pose a threat to civil liberties, the UN has said.
The legislative overhaul, which is part of a decades-long process to replace Indonesia’s colonial-era penal code, was approved by the parliament on Tuesday.
Intimidating the president, the national flag, or state institutions is a violation of the criminal code.
People must also get a permit to hold a protest, and they can’t spread fake news or views that are against the state’s ideology.
Other articles criminalize sex outside of marriage, cohabitation between unmarried couples, the promotion of contraception to minors, and abortion for non-rape victims, according to officials in the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation.
“The U.N. is worried that few articles in the reconsidered Criminal Code repudiate Indonesia’s worldwide lawful commitments concerning basic liberties,” the U.N’s. nearby office said in a proclamation delivered on Thursday.
According to the statement, “Some articles have the potential to criminalize journalistic work… Others would discriminate against or have a discriminatory impact on women, girls, boys, and sexual minorities.”
According to the statement, the code could also have an impact on rights to reproductive and privacy information and worsen gender-based violence based on sexual orientation and identity.
Civil society organizations have criticized the new laws, claiming that they represent a significant setback for democracy and pose a particular threat to LGBT individuals, who may be disproportionately affected by the so-called morality clauses.
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According to a statement released by Human Rights Watch, “Same-sex couples cannot marry in Indonesia, so this clause also effectively renders all same-sex conduct illegal.”
Indonesia’s justice ministry noted that morality laws, which will not take effect for another three years, can only be reported by limited parties, such as a spouse, parent, or child, in response to criticism of the criminal code.
The ministry stated in a statement, “Investors and foreign tourists don’t have to worry about investing and traveling in Indonesia, because people’s privacy is still guaranteed by law.”
