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House urged to protect human rights, prevent excessive criminalization
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All set: House of Representatives members get prepared to attend a plenary meeting at the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on July 27. (Antara/Wahyu Putro A.)
T
he Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) has called on the House of Representatives to focus its attention on protecting human rights and reducing excessive criminalization during the deliberation of draft laws in the upcoming legislative program.
The House held a plenary meeting on Tuesday to finalize the 2018 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas). Eight out of the 50 bills on the program are related to criminal laws, including a bill to revise the Criminal Code and another bill on terrorism.
“The House must ensure that human rights are protected, especially in the use of criminal punishments,” ICJR executive director Supriyadi Eddyono said in a statement on Wednesday.
He further said the House should address the problem of excessive criminalization, which he said had reached "a worrying level."
“Pasal karet [catchall articles] should be repealed,” Supriyadi said.
"Alternative criminal punishments should also be considered, not just prison sentences," he added, citing fines, social work and suspended sentences as examples.
Supriyadi also urged the House to make the deliberation process of the bills more transparent and open to the public.
The ICJR noted that out of the eight criminal-law related bills, four were still being deliberated. They are the Criminal Code bill, the sexual assault bill, the alcoholic beverages bill and the terrorism bill.
“The deliberation process is taking much longer than it needs to," Eddyono said. "The House should manage its time and energy so that it can hold serious discussions and fulfil the Prolegnas target." (kmt/ebf)
