Jakarta – Lawmakers passed the child protection bill into law after months of deliberation, delivering substantial changes to the previous law on child protection, Law 23 of 2003.

The revised law increases the maximum prison sentence for offenders convicted of sexual offenses if the perpetrator is among the people "closest" to the victim, such as a teacher or parent, by a third.

It also increases financial penalties. Previously, punishment for such offenses was three and 15 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of Rp 5 billion ($415,000).

"If the perpetrators are people close [to the child], such as parents, relatives and even teachers, the punishment will be increased by one third of the maximum sentence," Women Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Linda Amalia Sari Gumelar said after the bill was passed into law on Thursday.

The revised law also changes the meaning, shifting its frame of reference from "sexual violence" to "sexual crime."

The law also increases protection for children who become victims of sexual crime, are living in a terrorist network, or have been stigmatized because their parents committed crimes such as corruption and children with behavioral disorders.

The law's advocates say such protections are needed to anticipate and prevent actions that would take advantage the children and endanger their growth. Children who become victims of substance abuse such as narcotics and tobacco will also be protected under the revised law.

The law also mandates city administrations to provide protection for children through budget allocations or establishing a local women's empowerment and child protection agencies.

Because of the newly passed law's specific subject matter, its interpretive status is that of lex specialis (special law), meaning that it supersedes previous legislation and all future regulations concerning children will refer to this law.

The government said it will issue six ministerial regulations and one presidential regulation pursuant to the law.

Priyo Budi Santoso, deputy speaker in the House of Representatives, said the high prevalence of violence against children in Indonesia showed their vulnerability, which necessitated the reclassification of such offenses as extraordinary crimes.

Source: http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/revised-child-law-increases-penalties-protections/