Going backwards

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Original link: Indonesia’s new penal code takes effect, marking historic break with colonial law / AP.

It sounds good on the surface.

The enforcement of the new penal code marks “the end of the colonial criminal law era and the beginning of a
more humane, modern, and just legal system rooted in Indonesian culture,” said Coordinating Minister for Law,
Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra.

“This is a historic moment for the Indonesian nation,” Mahendra said in a statement on Friday.

He said the old code based on Dutch law is “no longer relevant to the dynamics of modern Indonesian society.”

Under the amended code, sex outside marriage is punishable by up to one year in prison, while cohabitation
carries a six-month sentence. 
...
The code also restores a ban on insulting a sitting president or vice president, state institutions and the national ideology.
Cases must be reported by the president and carry penalties of up to three years in prison for “attacking the honor or dignity”
of state leaders.
...
The new code also expands an existing blasphemy law, maintaining prison sentences of up to five years for deviations from the
core teachings of Indonesia’s six officially recognized religions. It preserves penalties of up to 10 years for associating
with Marxist-Leninist organizations and four years for spreading communist ideology.

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