Indonesia’s new penal code takes effect

Jakarta: Indonesia on Friday began enforcing its newly ratified penal code, replacing a Dutch-era criminal law that had governed the country for more than 80 years and marking a major shift in its legal landscape.

Since proclaiming independence in 1945, the Southeast Asian country had continued to operate under a colonial framework widely criticised as outdated and misaligned with Indonesia’s social values. Efforts to revise the code stalled for decades as lawmakers debated how to balance human rights, religious norms and local traditions in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

The 345-page Indonesian Penal Code, known as the KUHP, was passed in 2022. At the time, then-US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the US was “closely monitoring the revised criminal code” of its democratic partner. It criminalises sex outside marriage, applies to citizens and foreign visitors, and reintroduces penalties for insulting the president and state institutions. It comes into force following a 3-year transition period.