Indonesia is set to pass a new penal code criminalising consensual sex outside of marriage, according to a report in CNN. This would effectively outlaw same-sex relations, a move criticized by rights groups as a "violation of basic rights."
According to the report, the draft code will also introduce penalties for insulting the president. It is set to be adopted next week after government's nod today.
Human Rights Watch has however, called the draft criminal code "disastrous not only for women and religious and gender minorities but for all Indonesians." It has been calling on lawmakers to drop the controversial articles before passing the law.
A group of NGOs are urging Indonesian President Joko Widodo to delay the 628-article bill before it is expected to be legalised on September 24.
Under the proposed law, extramarital sex can be punished by up to one year in prison and couples can be prosecuted if a close family lodges a police complaint.
Unmarried couples who are reported to police for living together could be sentenced to six months in prison or face a fine. If close family members do not object, a village chief can also file a police complaint.
Indonesia's Minister of Law and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly, who reintroduced the bill 2015, said that the law replaces the 100-year-old Dutch colonial-era penal code and would make Indonesia's criminal law more in line with how Indonesians live today.
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