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North Sumatra rights activists gather support for antisexual violence bill
The bill's deliberation has been halted for years because of objections from Muslim conservative groups. The House of Representatives has resubmitted the bill in its National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) this year following demands from civil society organizations.
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Women activists from various organizations take part in a long march in the Thamrin area, Central Jakarta, on Sunday to commemorate International Women's Day, which falls on March 8. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
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group of women's rights activists under the North Sumatra Women’s March movement staged a rally on Sunday to commemorate the 2020 International Women's Day, during which they gathered support for the passage of a long-awaited antisexual violence bill.
The bill's deliberation has been halted for years because of objections from Muslim conservative groups. The House of Representatives has resubmitted the bill in its National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) this year following demands from civil society organizations.
North Sumatra Women’s March coordinator Lely Zailani said the move would work toward ending impunity for sexual violence offenders.
She said cases of violence against women has increased over the past 12 years, as recorded by the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan). The commission's 2019 annual report revealed that 406,178 cases of violence against women were reported throughout the year or a 14 percent increase from 2018.
Around 71 percent of the reported cases in 2019 involved domestic violence, while another 28 percent involved public harassment and the remaining 1 percent were various kinds of violence, including online harassment.
"We demand that the government pass the antisexual violence bill immediately," Lely said, adding that women had been victims of violence at home, schools, public transportation, the workplace and cyberspace.
The director of the North Sumatra United Alliance, Ferry Wira Padang, also threw his support behind the movement.
"All signatures [to support the bill’s deliberation] will be handed to the government," he said. (vny)
