Bowing to public pressures rejecting the controversial revisions of the Criminal Code, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Friday called on the House of Representatives to hold off the bill deliberation, citing public concerns over some problematic articles in the bill. The House initially rushed the deliberation and planned to pass it into law before its term ended this month. Following the President’s call, however, the lawmakers seem to be holding off the deliberation. Jokowi’s decision was likely driven by massive criticisms and protests from numerous scholars and civil society organizations as well as from students, who staged rallies in front of the House on Thursday and Friday. In a statement on Friday, Jokowi said he had continuously looked into and listened to the concerns of the public who had expressed their objections to some articles in the bil...