The Indonesian island’s governor Wayan Koster said there would be no “checks on marital status” for foreigners booking hotels and rentals on the island, with tourists not expected to abide by the new rules.
The human rights watchdogs and LGBTQ+ activists have raised fears about the new legislation, which was first floated in 2019 and sparked nationwide protests.
The gay rights activists say the extra-marital laws amount to a ban on same-sex relations since lesbian and gay Indonesians cannot legally marry.
The Indonesian officials say the new code, which will come into effect from 2025, upholds “Indonesian values”.
As well as new limits on sex and cohabitation for unmarried people, it bans insulting or speaking contrary to the Indonesian government, and makes protest illegal without protestors adequately “notifying” authorities beforehand.
Mr Koster, along with government spokesperson Albert Aries, attempted to reassure tourists that the new laws will only been enforced for residents.
Last week, Mr Aries said the new code had “never provided additional administrative requirements for business actors in the tourism sector to ask anyone about their marital status.”
However, on Thursday the UN issued a statement saying certain provisions in the new code were “incompatible with fundamental freedoms and human rights, including the right to equality before the law and equal protection of the law without discrimination, the rights to privacy as well as the rights to freedom of religion or belief and freedom of opinion and expression”.
“Some articles have the potential to criminalise journalistic work and impinge upon press freedom. Others would discriminate against, or have a discriminatory impact on, women, girls, boys and sexual minorities and would risk adversely affecting a range of sexual and reproductive health rights, the right to privacy, and exacerbate gender-based violence, and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity,” the statement continued.
Tags: Bali, Indonesian government, new sex law, LGBTQ+ activists
