Most laws show male dominance over women
Most laws show male dominance over women
JAKARTA (JP): Most Indonesian laws, especially criminal laws,
reflect male dominance over women, a legal expert said yesterday.
This condition is detrimental to women when it comes to the
interpretation of violence, I.S. Susanto of the state-owned
Diponegoro University said as reported by Antara.
More specifically, Susanto said the laws and regulations in
Indonesia reflect the values of male bureaucrats and military
officers who dominate the legislative process in this country.
The role of men in law formulation, he said, "influences the
interpretation and standards of evaluating forms of violence
against women," said Susanto, who teaches in the post-graduate
program of the University's School of Law.
Cultural influences are very important in the formulation of
laws, Susanto said.
Violence is a "sub-culture" which is often used here to settle
personal and group problems in legal, social, political and
security matters, he added.
Susanto said the cultural values that emanate from male
dominance "subconsciously foster a high incidence of violence."
Violence is carried out to maintain a man's power and his urge
to become "a real man," Susanto said.
These values extend to the economic discrimination of women
and preservation of the notion that, he said, "true women are
housewives" and should be treated as children.
It is these values which contribute to the "elastic"
interpretations of violent incidents, he said.
Susanto cited clause 285 of the Criminal Code. The clause,
which deals with rape, states that a man who forcibly has
intercourse with a woman who is not his wife faces a maximum of
12 years in prison if found guilty.
Susanto said that by setting a maximum term of imprisonment
the clause protects male interests more than it protects female
victims.
Muladi, another law professor, disagreed with the assumption
that the legal system is male-oriented simply because it was
formulated and enacted by the administration and a predominantly
male legislature.
"Indonesia has ratified the United Nations Convention of the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women," said
Muladi, who is a Diponegoro University rector.
However, he admitted that women are still subject to values
which characterize them as second-class citizens.
Evidence of this can be found in company employment policies.
Even maternity rights, which are guaranteed by law, are still
violated, he said.
Many employers are also more inclined to promote their male
employees before their female counterparts. (anr)