Indonesia discards colonial legacy by enacting new penal code
Since independence in 1945, Indonesia had operated under a colonial framework criticised as outdated and misaligned with its social values.
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.
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.
The new law 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 three-year transition period.
Moving away from a colonial framework
A previously revised code was poised for passage in 2019, but then-President Joko Widodo urged lawmakers to delay a vote amid mounting public criticism that led to nationwide protests involving tens of thousands of people.
A parliamentary task force finalised the bill in November 2022, and lawmakers unanimously approved it a month later in what the government called a “historic step.”
Deputy Law Minister Edward Hiariej says the reforms as a modernisation effort that shifts Indonesia’s criminal justice paradigm toward corrective, restorative and rehabilitative justice.
“The new criminal code prioritises repairing harm and social reintegration, rather than relying solely on punishment,” Hiariej said during a briefing on the new penal code on Thursday, adding that these principles reflect values long embedded in Indonesian society.
Alongside the KUHP, Indonesia is also preparing a new criminal procedural law, or KUHAP, aimed at addressing procedural inefficiencies and strengthening human rights protections. Together, the reforms represent a comprehensive overhaul of the justice system, Hiariej said.
Provisions under scrutiny
Under the amended code, sex outside marriage is punishable by up to one year in prison, while cohabitation carries a six-month sentence. However, adultery cases can only proceed following a complaint by a spouse, parents or children — a safeguard the government says prevents arbitrary enforcement, including against tourists.
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 honour or dignity” of state leaders.
Hiariej said the government has issued strict guidelines distinguishing criticism from criminal insult.
The new code maintains prison sentences of up to five years for deviations from the core teachings of Indonesia’s six officially recognised religions. It preserves penalties of up to 10 years for associating with Marxist-Leninist organisations and four years for spreading communist ideology.
The revised code retains the death penalty, despite calls from rights groups to abolish capital punishment. However, it introduces a 10-year probationary period, after which death sentences may be commuted to life imprisonment or 20 years if the convict demonstrates good behavior.
It also maintains a ban on abortion while formalising existing exceptions for life-threatening medical conditions and pregnancies resulting from rape, provided the fetus is less than 12 weeks old.