To or to not have sex before marriage; it’s a sentiment that means different things to different people, usually on a personal level.
Some folks will pull a Mean Girls’ Coach Carr moment on you when posed the sentiment. “Don’t have sex because you will get pregnant and die!” Others will look at you dumb-founded and ask whether you’re stuck in centuries gone by.
While people’s preferences should be their own, what happens when the conversation moves from the personal to the enforced?
Such is the current case for Indonesian citizens and visitors after the Indonesian parliament revealed that sex outside of marriage is not only banned, but is also punishable. Jail time for pre-marital sex? Parliament has spoken.
The law forms part of a new criminal code and was announced on Tuesday. While the law is not anticipated to kick in for the foreseeable future (the next three years), it has already stirred a surmountable backlash.
Tourism is a fundamental part of Indonesian economic activity. Hence, many travel operators aren’t exactly beaming about the decision.
According to CNN, the Association of The Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies’ chairman shared that the law will be “very counterproductive for the tourism industry in Bali—particularly the chapters about sex and marriage.”
Maulana Yusran, the deputy chief of the Indonesia torusim industry board shared the sentiment, stating, “we deeply regret the government have closed their eyes. We have already expressed our concern to the ministry of tourism about how harmful this law is,” per Reuters.
Moreover, the ban also forbids cohabitation before tying the knot, where close kin will be expected to report any cohabitation activity.
The new criminal code has also faced heat from Human Rights Watch, who reportedly said the code doesn’t “meet international human rights standards.”
Flags have also been raised surrounding what the criminalisation means for minorities, women and sex workers.
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