Indonesia's parliament has approved a criminal code that bans sex outside marriage with a punishment of up to one year in jail, part of a raft of legal ...
Sweeping changes to Indonesia's criminal code come as Kiwis begin booking the first direct flights to Bali since the pandemic started.
The chairman of the Association of the Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies in Bali, Putu Winastra, questioned how the new rules would be enforced, saying to CNN “Should we ask (overseas unmarried couples) if they are married or not? “As a parliamentarian, I will try to find more limitations for the implementation of these articles.” [sentenced to two and a half years in jail](https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/91575086/new-zealand-woman-jailed-for-25-years-in-bali-for-possessing-methamphetamine) after a plastic sachet containing 0.43 grams of methamphetamine fell out of her pocket at Bali’s Ngurah Airport. [sentenced to 15 years in jail](https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/69851018/antony-de-malmanche-sentenced-to-15-years-prison-on-drug-charge) after being caught with 1.8km of methamphetamine in his backpack at Denpasar Airport. [told The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/06/indonesia-passes-legislation-banning-sex-outside-marriage) a tourist could be arrested if they had consensual sex with an Indonesian national, and it was reported to police by the Indonesian’s parent or child. [restart its non-stop flights to Bali](https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/300725743/air-new-zealand-to-resume-direct-bali-flights) in March 2023, making the holiday hot spot more accessible for Kiwis than it has been in years. [obtained by The Associated Press](https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/300758519/indonesia-criminalises-adultery-and-extramarital-sex) said adultery charges must be based on police reports lodged by a spouse, parents or children. [After a year with hardly any tourists, Bali will reopen for foreign travel in February](https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/300508922/after-a-year-with-hardly-any-tourists-bali-will-reopen-for-foreign-travel-in-february?rm=a) [magnet for “digital nomads”](https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/kiwi-traveller/300675820/wake-up-somewhere-more-exotic-five-of-the-best-places-to-be-a-digital-nomad), and is hoping to attract more remote workers with its new five-year digital nomad visa. A spokesperson for the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) said the ministry is monitoring the impacts of the new code “and will assess in due course whether additional information should be included in our travel advisory for Indonesia”. [Indonesia criminalises adultery and extramarital sex](https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/300758519/indonesia-criminalises-adultery-and-extramarital-sex?rm=a) [passed a controversial revision](https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/300758519/indonesia-criminalises-adultery-and-extramarital-sex) of its criminal code which makes extramarital sex punishable by a year in prison for citizens and overseas visitors alike.
Indonesia's controversial new ban on sex outside of marriage has sparked warnings that thousands of Australians who visit Bali every week could face prison ...
particularly on the rights of freedom of expression and press freedom,” Amnesty International Indonesia director Usman Hamid told AFP. Analysts say the new code also curtails some political rights. “The passing of the criminal code bill is clearly a step back in the protection of civil rights … But he invited critics to “file a judicial review to the constitutional court” instead of demonstrating. Spreading ideas “contradictory to Pancasila” — the official ideology of Indonesia which stresses unity and respect for ethnic and religious minorities — will be punishable by a maximum of four years in prison. Bambang Wuryanto, head of the commission that oversaw deliberations on the text, acknowledged “this is a product by humans and hence it will never be perfect”. New to Flash? “However, it is time for us to make a historical decision on the penal code amendment and to leave the colonial criminal code we inherited behind.” After the text was endorsed by all nine parties in a sweeping overhaul of the criminal code, Deputy House Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad banged the gavel to signal the text was approved and shouted “legal”. “One thing I’ve seen is foreigners and tourists getting on the wrong side of the law,” she said, suggesting tourists might end up being investigated for premarital sex after coming to the attention of police for something unrelated. “It would be applicable to tourists,” Professor Simon Butt from the University of Sydney’s centre for Asian and Pacific law told “I was shocked when I saw the headlines — I think the Balinese community will be thinking this is a massive setback to tourism,” said Jenny Hewett, a travel journalist who has lived on-and-off in Bali since 2016.
The Indonesian Government in Jakarta has passed long-expected changes to its criminal code, which will affect both locals and visitors to the country.
Prior to the pandemic Bali was praised by Jakarta as an engine for international travel. This has helped a large tourism industry to thrive on the island. There will now be a three year introductory period which will bring the new legal framework into effect across the 17,000 islands that make up Indonesia. However there are a raft of other measures including laws against unmarried couples cohabiting that could have implications for tourism businesses. Article 411 of the new criminal code will not come into effect for the next three years, at least. There are also concerns that same-sex couples may be impacted, as Indonesia does not recognise same-sex marriage.
WENDELL HUSSEY | Cadet | CONTACT. The Indonesian government has today introduced another controversial new policy, banning a swathe of airlines from the ...
The move comes as a logical next step, with the conservative government pushing to protect the sanctity of virginity until marriage. On top of that move, which has people from Launceston to Perth fearing for the god-given right to have a cheap holiday at the expense of an impoverished regional neighbour, Virgin will now be the only airline allowed to operate in Indonesia. The conservative government in charge of the world’s third largest democracy has revealed that only Virgin Airways will be allowed to fly in and out of Denpasar airport.