Criminal code to change definition of rape
JAKARTA (JP): When is a rape not rape?
Based on the Criminal Code, many rapes would not be considered a rape in court.
Prominent lawyer and woman activist Nursyahbani Katjasungkana said Article 285 of the Criminal Code vaguely defined rape as only applicable when the victim was not related to the assailant.
"The rapist is not considered a rapist here if the man is the woman's husband," Nursyahbani said during a talk on sexual harassment and human reproduction over the weekend.
This will hopefully change soon under a new Criminal Code, a draft of which has already been prepared, with a more all- encompassing definition of rape.
One definition includes a requirement that the sexual partner must be a consenting adult.
"Rape is categorized into seven acts in the new draft law," Nursyahbani said on Saturday.
They are sexual acts committed without the consent of the party, without the desire of the other party, sex with a minor aged 14 years and below, oral sex, anal sex, sex utilizing tools or any kind of material, including drugs, and incest.
While lauding the progressive nature of the definition of rape in the draft, Nursyahbani lamented the leniency of the punishment which remains unchanged. A convicted rapist receives a maximum 12-year jail term.
The sole new addition in the draft proposes setting a minimum three-month jail term for rape offenders.
Among the sponsors at the talk at the Bulungan Youth Center in South Jakarta on Saturday were local youth magazine Aneka Yess! and Marina local cosmetics.
Nuniek H. Musawa of the magazine said similar educational seminars on teenage topics would be held twice a month, beginning that Saturday, and would be advertised beforehand in the media.
Harrasment
Speaking to an audience of 500 mostly teenage girls, Nursyahbani described conduct experienced on the street or at work that could be categorized as sexual harassment.
The behavior included suggestive whistling, persistent talk about sexual topics, repeated requests for a date regardless of a turndown, continual personal questions about an individual's sex life, refusal to hire someone on the basis of their gender, and the demand for sexual favors in return for help.
"Anything that's unwanted, unwelcomed attention is sexual harassment, even touching, hugging and kissing; anything that makes you think 'this is not right'," Nursyahbani said.
To avoid harassment, one should avoid walking alone at night, be assertive and wear clothes that do not invite attention, she said.
Indrawati, a gynecologist who also addressed the gathering, added that women should equip themselves with self-defense tools such as matches, scissors and deodorant sprays.
"Try not to look confused if you are in a strange place... be vigilant," she said.
In her short explanation of the reproductive organs, Indrawati discouraged the young audience from engaging in premarital sex, saying that condoms were no guarantee against pregnancy.(ylt)