On Thursday, 18 April 2019, the Centre for Human Rights, Multiculturalism, and Migration (CHRM2) conducted the seminar series on the woman victims on the bill of the elimination of sexual violence in Indonesia. The presenter was Naila Rizqi Zakiah, a women’s rights activist and co-coordinator of the Women’s March Jakarta. He worked at the Legal Aid Institute Community (LBHM) Jakarta.
Beginning the discussion, she delivered the presentation by revealing that the rate of sexual violence especially experienced by women from year to year is increasing. Based on the annual record of the National Commission on Violence Against Women in 2019, there were 2,988 cases of sexual violence in the private sphere, 2,521 in the public domain, and 16 cases of sexual violence involving state actors.
The amount of data on sexual violence can be seen from two sides. On the one hand, the data shows the failure of the state in preventing and handling cases of sexual violence. On the other hand, this data signifies high public awareness to recognize and report cases of sexual violence. It confirms that the state does not only fail to provide protection against sexual violence but also cease to identify the development of forms of sexual violence and its medium such as sexual violence that ends up in cyberspace. While the current legal system has not been able to address these episodes, legal reform and supporting infrastructure are needed to overcome the problem of sexual violence.
In 2014, victims’ groups, assistants, and female activists initiated the formation of the Bill of the Elimination of Sexual Violence. Based on the experience of female victims in accessing justice and recovery, this Bill was then compiled by prioritizing women’s rights principles as stated in the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and using the feminist legal theory approach. The Bill also collects and identifies nine forms of sexual violence to accommodate the needs of victims of sexual violence who have so far failed to obtain justice and recovery because limited legal barriers only recognize two forms of sexual violence, namely rape and sexual abuse.