The Indonesian Parliament approves a penal reform that penalizes sexual relations outside of marriage

JAKARTA, 6 Dec. (DPA/EP) -

The Indonesian Parliament has approved this Tuesday a reform of the penal code that penalizes sexual relations outside marriage with up to one year in prison and that punishes couples who live together without getting married with six months in prison.

Members of the House of Representatives have carried the bill by acclamation in a plenary session, despite strong demonstrations protesting that the measure would threaten civil liberties in the Muslim country, as reported by DPA.

The law will enter into force in 2025, three years after its approval, a measure expected by some sectors that described the previous penal code as a legacy of the colonial era.

"It's been 59 years of waiting," said the country's deputy minister for Law and Human Rights, Edward Omar Sharief declared, adding that the old penal code was "a vestige of Dutch colonial domination."

On Monday, hundreds of Indonesians demonstrated in several cities, demanding Parliament scrap the bill. After its approval, more protests are expected, according to the aforementioned agency.

"Indonesia intends to head down the path of rights-threatening disaster by criminalizing sex outside of marriage," Human Rights Watch associate Asia director Phil Robertson wrote on Twitter.

Sex outside of marriage, including homosexuality, is not currently a crime but is considered taboo in conservative Indonesia.

The bill also provides for a maximum of three years in jail for anyone who "attempts against the dignity" of the president or vice president.

In addition, those who insult the government could be sentenced to 18 months in prison or three years if the offense causes social unrest.

For its part, the dissemination of false news is punishable by up to six years in prison.