Did you know that in Indonesia there are still at least 305 regulations that are discriminatory against women, even though it has been 40 years since the principles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women/CEDAW)?
In a press release on Wednesday (24/7) to criticize the 40th anniversary of the ratification of CEDAW, the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) said that there are still hundreds of regulations “that control women's bodies, limit freedom of religion and belief, discriminate against sexual minorities and female sex workers, limit access to basic services – including the right to sexual and reproductive health – for people with HIV/AIDS.
“There is still a lack of understanding about CEDAW for the executive, legislative, judiciary, at the national and local levels, and there are still a number of laws and regulations both at the national and regional levels that are discriminatory against women,” said Deputy Chair of the Kalyanamitra Foundation, Rena Herdiyani.
He gave the example of CEDAW, which is mostly understood by the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection, but is not yet understood by other ministries/institutions, including the DPR.
Other challenges include the fact that CEDAW has not become an integral part of policy implementation and is institutionalized in ministries and institutions, the systematic monitoring of the implementation of recommendations is not yet optimal, and the lack of continuity between officials or agencies after a change of government.
Progress vs Regression
However, there has been some progress made by Indonesia in terms of government policies that are in line with the principles of CEDAW, including Regulation of the Minister of Education Number 30 of 2021 concerning Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence in Higher Education, Law Number 12 of 2022 concerning Criminal Acts of Sexual Violence, and Government Regulation Number 27 of 2024 concerning Coordination and Monitoring of the Implementation of Prevention and Handling of Victims of Criminal Acts of Sexual Violence.
National Commission on Violence Against Women Commissioner Rainy Hutabarat specifically highlighted the inconsistency of several regulations with CEDAW principles and norms, such as the Job Creation Law No. 11 of 2020 which does not fulfill women's rights regarding paid maternity leave, menstrual and breastfeeding leave, and also the rights of women with disabilities. The ratification of Law No. 4 of 2024 concerning Maternal and Child Welfare also has the potential to institutionalize women's domestic roles, discriminating against women in accessing jobs and career advancement opportunities, she added.
There are also regulations that are like a double-edged sword because they recommend that the practice of female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM) no longer be carried out, but mandate religious authorities to create guidelines for its implementation. As a result, the 2020-2030 FGM/C Prevention Roadmap faces challenges from the social, legal, cultural and religious fields.
The National Commission on Violence Against Women also criticized Law No. 7 of 2016 concerning the Protection and Empowerment of Fishermen, Fish Farmers and Salt Farmers which still discriminates against the rights of female fishermen because the definition of fishermen is limited only to those whose job is catching fish, while there are many types of jobs in which women are involved.
While efforts to pass the Domestic Workers Protection Bill (RUU PPRT) for more than 20 years, until today it is still running in place. Likewise, the Indigenous Peoples Bill, which has a wide impact on the human rights of indigenous and rural women.
“The National Commission on Violence Against Women reminds us that although the TPKS Law regulates sexual torture, there are still many other gender-based tortures, including the death penalty in drug cases, torture of women in detention and similar detention,” said Rainy.
Why Does the State Fail to Protect Women?
Dean of the Faculty of Law, Atmajaya University, Asmin Fransiska, said that although CEDAW requires the state to provide legal protection for women, there are still a number of factors that cause the state to fail. Among others, because of the strong patriarchal culture and domestication of women's issues, as well as the inclusion of ambiguous morality issues in the process of forming regulations. This means that legal reform has not been running optimally, while the legal apparatus and bureaucracy are corrupt and not independent, he said.
“Article (1) of CEDAW asks for an explanation that protection for women, especially regarding discrimination against women, discrimination against women, does not stop at physical acts, verbal violence. But it must be included in legislative products that regulate the right to life, regarding what is prohibited,” he said.
The Indonesian government must submit a report on the achievements and challenges of CEDAW implementation to the CEDAW Committee periodically. According to the plan, next year the government will carry out a number of activities to encourage the participation of civil society, Ministries/State Institutions including State Human Rights Institutions before submitting the IX periodic report to the CEDAW Committee. (fw/em)
