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'Punishment reform' needed to lower prison population in Indonesia
The latest draft of the amendment includes a range of alternative forms of punishment, including convict supervision, fines, community service, imprisonment in installments as well as punishment under customary law. These alternative forms of punishment are expected to save the government hundreds of millions of rupiah.
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Inmates are seen behind bars at Idi detention center in Kampung Jalan village, East Aceh regency, Aceh, on May 19, 2016. (Antara/Syifa Yulinnas)
J
akarta-based activist group the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) has expressed support for the alternative non-imprisonment forms of punishment included in the draft Criminal Code amendment that aim to address overcrowding in prisons.
The latest draft of the amendment, which was updated on July 9, 2018, includes a range of alternative forms of punishment, including convict supervision, fines, community service, imprisonment in installments as well as punishment under customary law. These alternative forms of punishment are expected to save the government hundreds of millions of rupiah.
ICJR researcher Genoveva Alicia said that although the draft amendment contained more alternative penalties than the current Criminal Code, the government must ensure their implementation when passed into law.
“The government should immediately [implement the options],” she said in a discussion in Central Jakarta on Wednesday.
Genoveva said the government should facilitate the alternative forms of punishment by providing, among other things, infrastructure and training for legal authorities.
Titled “Finding the solution for overcrowded prisons”, the discussion was attended by representatives from the Law and Human Rights Ministry and National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) as well as legal experts.
Indonesia's prisons are currently overcrowded and there is also a shortage of prison guards, leading to various disciplinary problems.
