Millions may risk jail as Indonesia to outlaw sex outside marriage
JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia is poised to pass a new penal code that criminalizes consensual sex outside marriage and introduces stiff penalties for insulting the president's dignity - a move rights groups criticized as an intrusive assault on basic freedoms.
Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim majority country and has substantial Christian, Hindu and Buddhist minorities, but has seen a recent trend towards deeper religious piety and conservative Islamic activism.
The new criminal code is due to be adopted in the next week after parliament and the government agreed a final draft on Wednesday, four parliamentarians told Reuters.
Lawmakers told Reuters that the new penal code, which would replace a Dutch colonial-era set of laws, was a long overdue expression of Indonesian independence and religiosity.
"The state must protect citizens from behavior that is contrary to the supreme precepts of God," said Nasir Djamil, a politician from the Prosperous Justice Party. He said leaders of all religions had been consulted on the changes given that Indonesia's founding ideology was based on belief in God.
Under the proposed laws, unmarried couples who "live together as a husband and wife" could be jailed for six months or face a maximum fine of 10 million rupiah ($710), which is three months' salary for many Indonesians.
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