Investors Unhappy with the New Indonesian Criminal Code? Here's the US Public's Stance on Extramarital Sex

The Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) passed the Draft Criminal Code (RKUHP) into law on Tuesday (6/12/2022).

The Head of Commission III of the Indonesian DPR, Bambang Wuryanto, stated that this new Criminal Code (KUHP) can guarantee legal certainty, create utility and justice, and create a non-suffering and non-degrading criminal process.

"And increase public trust in the resolution of legal conflicts while upholding legal norms, increasing respect for human rights (HAM) values, and strengthening law enforcement and the rule of law in Indonesia," said Bambang in his press release, Tuesday (6/12/2022).

Could the New Criminal Code Drive Away Investors?

On the other hand, the United States (US) Ambassador to Indonesia criticized the new Criminal Code for including articles related to 'morality'. According to him, this could make foreign investors reluctant to invest.

"We remain concerned that morality clauses, which attempt to regulate what happens in the consenting adult bedrooms, could negatively impact the investment climate in Indonesia," said US Ambassador Sung Kim in his remarks at the AmCham Investment Summit in Jakarta, Tuesday (6/12/2022).

"Criminalizing individual private decisions will be a large part of the decision matrix for many companies to determine whether they will invest in Indonesia. The result could lead to a decrease in foreign investment, tourism, and travel," he continued.

Although not explicitly mentioned, the US Ambassador's criticism relates, among other things, to the Criminal Code articles that criminalize extramarital sex or adultery. The Criminal Code also criminalizes couples who cohabitate without a marriage.

Because it is formulated as a delict of complaint, perpetrators of extramarital sex and cohabitation can only be reported by the spouse of the party concerned. For perpetrators who are not married/not in a marital relationship, complaints can only be made by parents or children.

American Views on Sex

According to a study by Jean M. Twenge et al. from San Diego State University, US society tends to have an open attitude towards sexuality.

"In the 1950s, men and women in the US rarely lived together before marriage. However, in recent times, among younger generations, US society is more accepting of sexual activity outside of marriage and more likely to participate in it," said Twenge in the research report *Changes in American Adults Sexual Behavior and Attitudes 1972-2012*.

"In the 1970s, the percentage of US citizens who considered adult pre-marital sex 'not wrong at all' was only 29%, then rose to 42% in the 1980s and 1990s, 49% in the 2000s, and 58% in 2010-2012," she continued.

However, it seems that not all US citizens engage in extramarital sex. According to Twenge's findings, out of approximately 18,000 respondents surveyed in 2010-2012, only 15.4% of US citizens had ever had premarital sex.

Twenge stated that this kind of research needs to be conducted continuously to understand socio-cultural changes. However, research on extramarital sex or cohabitation may be difficult to conduct in Indonesia, because besides still being largely taboo, the research subjects are now declared criminal offenses.