Indonesia is set to make some changes to its criminal code including the penalizing of sex outside of marriage.
The changes which senior officials confirmed would be made on Tuesday, may come into effect after three years as the government and related institutions draft regulations for implementation.
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The new code covers articles that would penalise offenders with up to one year in jail for having sex outside marriage, outlaw cohabitation between unmarried couples, and other similar offences.
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, and head of the parliamentary commission overseeing the revision, Bambang Wuryanto revealed on Monday that the parliament would hold a plenary session to rectify the new code, on Tuesday.
However, legal experts and civil society groups say the changes are a “huge setback” for the country.
Bivitri Susanti, a law expert from the University of Indonesia said, “The state cannot manage morality.”
She also stated that it is not the duty of the government to act “as an umpire between conservative and liberal Indonesia.”
