JakartaPost-Nov 12
Education, Culture, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarim has found himself in the spotlight after signing a ministerial regulation aimed at addressing sexual violence in universities that has been rejected by some conservative Muslim groups, which have argued it contravenes religious norms in the country. The regulation, signed on Aug. 31 but not published until October, was issued to address sexual violence in the country’s higher education institutions, which Nadiem said was one of the three “great sins” – the other two being intolerance and bullying – in the national education system that he wanted to abolish. It is also the second regulation issued by Nadiem to have met pushback from conservative groups. In February, he initiated the issuance of a joint ministerial decree banning public schools from making hijabs mandatory for non-Muslim students, which was later revoked by the Supreme Court following a petition from religious group. The newly published regulation provides a wider definition of sexual violence, which includes verbal, physical and nonphysical sexual assault, as well as assault through information and communication technology and an array of punishments for perpetrators of sexual violence in universities, including dismissal or expulsion of the perpetrators. Students have welcomed the regulation, which they say is a “big step” in the fight against sexual violence in the country’s universities. Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/indonesia/2021/11/11/ministerial-decree-against-sexual-violence-faces-pushback-from-islamic-groups.html.
