Anti-human trafficking law urgent, experts say<\/p>\n
Yogita Tahilramani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesia needs to carve out an anti-human trafficking bill,
\nconsidering that it has no law against all forms of human
\ntrafficking, experts say.<\/p>\n
The United Nations regards Indonesia as a supplier of victims
\nand one of the worst countries in handling the heinous phenomena.<\/p>\n
Lawyer Nursyahbani Katjasungkana said on Thursday that
\nIndonesia should set penalties equivalent to those set for other
\ngrave crimes.<\/p>\n
\"The bill should be drafted out in clear detail, since
\ntrafficking could be done for sexual purposes, could involve rape
\nor kidnapping, and could also cause death,\" Nursyahbani told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
She added that discussions over drafting the bill had earlier
\nbeen debated by the government but nothing had come out of it.<\/p>\n
Nursyahbani was responding to accusations made by the United
\nStates on Wednesday that 19 countries, including Indonesia, had
\nmade no real efforts to stop the trading of humans.<\/p>\n
The accusations were made in the United States's second annual
\nreport on human trafficking, which was mandated by the Congress
\nand carries the risk of sanctions being imposed on Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Nursyahbani said aside from an the dismal existing laws in
\nIndonesia that did nothing to stop trafficking of women and
\nchildren into the sex or forced labor industries, human
\ntrafficking here received financial backing from police and
\nborder officers.<\/p>\n
She pointed out that severe loopholes in Article 297 of the
\nIndonesian Criminal Code were constantly being exploited by
\norganized human traffickers and law enforcers like the local
\npolice, to facilitate their dehumanizing business.<\/p>\n
The Article states that anybody found guilty of \"trafficking
\nwomen and underaged boys\" could receive a maximum sentence of
\njust six years in jail.<\/p>\n
\"There are no paragraphs to that article or any other article
\nexplaining whether there is additional punishment if the victim
\nis found dead, severely tortured or sexually abused,\" Nursyahbani
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"No explanation either on (what happens to) people who are not
\ndirectly involved in the trafficking, but who financially support
\nthe traffickers.\"<\/p>\n
Separately, criminologist Harkristuti Harkrisnowo said that
\nbeing among the worst of the 19 countries should push Indonesia
\nto provide a system to investigate, prosecute and adequately
\npunish acts of trafficking.<\/p>\n
According to the U.S. report, at least 700,000, and possibly
\nas many as four million men, women and children worldwide over
\nthe past year, were bought, sold, transported and held against
\ntheir will in slave-like conditions.<\/p>\n
The second annual report places Indonesia in Tier 3, its worst
\ncategory, stating that it was a source country for trafficked
\npersons, primarily young women and girls.<\/p>\n
\"Trafficking also occurs within Indonesia's borders. Victims
\nare trafficked primarily for purposes of labor and sexual
\nexploitation,\" the report states.<\/p>\n
Harkristuti slammed the government for failing to ratify the
\n1949 United Nations convention on anti-trafficking of women,
\ndemanding that the government should speed up ratification of the
\nconvention.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/anti-human-trafficking-law-urgent-experts-say-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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