Rape, violence rock the country

Rape, violence rock the country

By T. Sima Gunawan and Rita A. Widiadana

Reports on the brutal rape of a mother and her two teenage
daughters in Bekasi, east of Jakarta, on Monday had not yet died
down when police announced they had arrested four teenagers
several hours after allegedly raping a junior high school girl in
South Jakarta last Thursday. Rape is a serious crime, but
traditional the view of women, and lack of severe punishments for
rapists have contributed to the high number of rape cases in
Indonesia. The Jakarta Post interviews experts on the issue.

JAKARTA (JP): Every woman, regardless of their social class,
is prone to sexual crimes. Rape is the most serious of the
offenses.

Reports about a brutal rape case have swamped local media the
last few days. A mother and her two teenage daughters were
brutally gang raped in their house in Bekasi, east of the city,
earlier this week while the father was bound by a rope.

The public reacted by expressing their empathy towards the
victims and condemning the criminals. With wrath and disgust,
some, including Minister of Women's Role Mien Sugandhi, demanded
that the rapists be sentenced to death if they are found.

Without specifically mentioning sexual violence, President
Soeharto on Thursday called for more effort to contain crime and
violence, which have been on the rise in Indonesia.

The police are holding several suspects for questioning about
the Bekasi rape case, and pledge to investigate the crime
thoroughly.

In another rape case, four teenagers were arrested several
hours after allegedly raping a junior high school girl in South
Jakarta Thursday.

Handling sexual offenses, including rape cases, is not easy.
The main element to prove a rape is the occurrence of forced
penetration. The others include the presence of witnesses and
physical evidence, such as sperm.

"In general, it is really difficult to prove rape," criminal
lawyer Mohamad Assegaf pointed out.

"A rape usually takes place without the presence of any
witness and the alleged rapist often argues that the sexual
contact is based on mau sama mau (the willingness of both
sides)," he said.

Immediate examination must be done to find evidence of forced
sexual intercourse or violence.

"But the victims will need sometime for the examination or
police questioning," said lawyer Rita Serena Kolibonso from the
Jakarta chapter of the Legal Aid Institute (LBH).

Of the 395 criminal cases reported to LBH in 1992, 10 percent
of them were rape, she said.

City police recorded more than 2,300 cases of sexual violence
against women in 1992. The number jumped to 3,200 in 1993 while
the first half of 1994 saw 3,000 cases.

Since April this year, city police have recorded an average of
7.5 rape cases a month. Last month the police recorded eight
cases while this month at least six cases have been recorded.

The actual number of rape cases is apparently much higher
because many victims are reluctant to report the crime for
various reasons including fear of reprisal, stigmatization,
humiliation and feelings of guilt and self-blame.

Virginity

"The fact that society 'worships' (women's) virginity is a
burden to rape victims," Rita said.

Many people in Indonesia consider a woman's virginity crucial.
They demand that women, but not men, stay virgins until they are
married. A clear example of this is the 1991's case of local
singer Farid Harja, who divorced his non-virgin wife only four
days after their marriage. There are men who take advantage of
the situation by taking another woman as a second wife after they
find that the brides are not virgins.

Due to this concept, most physicians who examine rape victims
concentrate on the hymen, Rita said.

"Instead of checking whether or not there has been any
violence against the women, the doctors will see whether or not
the hymen is broken," she said.

Assegaf blamed local media for dramatizing the situation by
reporting that rape victims face a bleak future.

He observed that the media has isolated rape victims.

"The media gives great attention to rape cases if the victims
are teenagers or single women, but I don't think they will give
similar attention if the victims are divorcees," Assegaf said.

The maximum sentence under the existing criminal code is 12
years in jail.

The draft of the new criminal code stipulates the same
punishment. If the victim is injured or dies, the maximum
punishment is 15 years in jail. Unlike the current law, however,
the draft sets a minimum three-year jail term.

Both the current law and the draft don't cover marital rape.

The public has long wanted a minimum sentence for rapists and
has urged the court to mete out harsher penalties for rapists,
particularly those who violate minors.

The Kompas daily reported last month that the Bekasi District
Court sentenced a defendant to five months and two weeks for
raping a minor. The Bangil District Court in East Java sentenced
two teenagers to 18 months and six months respectively for raping
seven minors. A resident of Tangerang, west of the city, received
an 11-year jail term for sexually abusing his daughter. In South
Sulawesi, a court sentenced a 17-year-old man to 20 years in jail
for raping a minor and then strangling her to death and robbing
her.

These cases illustrate the different attitude of judges toward
rape, a serious problem faced by the Indonesian justice system.

Melly G. Tan, a sociologists from the Indonesian Institute of
Science (LIPI), said that harsh punishment may not eliminate
rape, but at least will arouse a sense of social justice among
the community, women in particular.

"It will also give women a sense of security," she said.

Commenting on the Bekasi's rape, Melly stated that this was
really biadab, a very inhuman criminal conduct.

"I don't see any connection with personal or social gap," she
said.

In many rape cases, she explained, women were often blamed for
attracting unscrupulous men with provocative behavior.

In the Bekasi case, "There was not any provocation at all.
Moreover, the rapists did not steal any item at their house," she
said.

The motive behind the crime is still not clear.

Noting that there has been an alarming increase in rapes in
Jakarta and other cities, Melly believes that there isn't
anything to discourage men from committing the act.

Misconception

Many people see rape as an urban crime.

"But it is very hard to say that a rape case or other sexual-
related crime is one of negative impacts from any development
progress because the crime has already happened for years in both
rural and urban areas as well," Syarifah Sabarudin, a
criminologist from the University of Indonesia, said.

She said rape originates from the distorted relationship among
men and women. Previously women were considered the property of
their fathers and later their husbands. Some people continue to
believe this.

"This is a crime of a patriarchy system which offers no
protection for women against violence," Syarifah said.

Rape is a reflection of a male's supremacy over a women, she
added.

Social change is obviously needed in the fight against rape
and other sexual related crimes. This is a complex problem which
requires full participation from all parts of society -- not just
the law agents of the government.

Helping victims regain their confidence is important. The
crime often leaves them stigmatized for a long time, possibly for
the rest of their life.

Jakarta-based feminist group Kalyanamitra and some
individuals, including Rita, plan to establish crisis centers to
help victims of sexual crimes.

The government has neglected such action, which is quite
deplorable. Minister Mien Sugandhi regularly declares that
rapists must be executed. She also suggested that they be exposed
on television. To demonstrate her seriousness she visited the
Bekasi rape victims to express her empathy.

Real action, establishing a crisis center for example, would
be more helpful.