Regulation of sexuality in Indonesian discourse: Normative gender, criminal law and shifting strategies of control

Abstract

This paper examines changes in the regulation of sexuality in Indonesia in the period since 1980 as seen through state, religious and lesbian and gay activist discourses on sexuality. Three different eras during that period of Indonesian history are compared. Under the New Order regime of Suharto, the Indonesian state sought to control sexuality through a deployment of gender. During the 1990s, state Islamic discourses of sexuality shifted in response to international pressures to support same-sex marriage and sexual rights. During the third period following the end of the Suharto regime in 1998, a conservative Islamic minority pushed for more restrictive laws in the State Penal Code, initiating intense public debate on the role of the state in questions of sexuality and morality. Over this time period, the dominant discourse on sexuality moved from strategically linking normative gender with heterosexuality and marriage to direct attempts to legislate heterosexual marriage by criminalizing a wide range of sexual practices.

Self-Perceived Effects of Pornography Consumption in a Sample of Indonesian University Students

“…While the high rates of pornography consumption in Indonesia have been discussed elsewhere (Hald & Wijaya Mulya, 2013), no prior research has targeted the self-perceived and self-reported effects of such consumption. We position investigations into this as important as they may enrich the scientific and public debate on pornography consumption in Indonesia and elsewhere by bringing a consumer perspective to the debate (Blackwood, 2007;Hald, Seaman, & Linz, 2013). Further, such research using diverse samples allow for cross-cultural com-parison with existing comparable research (e.g., Boies, 2002;Weinberg et al, 2010).…”

“…From a Western point of view, sexuality in Indonesia may be considered highly conservative and sex is socially acceptable only within monogamous, heterosexual, religiously recognized marriages (Blackwood, 2007;Nilan, 2008;Utomo, 1997). Production, distribution, and consumption of pornography are prohibited by law and violation of the pornography laws carries sentences between 6 months and 12 years of imprisonment (The President of the Republic of Indonesia, 2008).…”

Muslim Women, Moral Visions: Globalization and Gender Controversies in Indonesia

“…Pornography became a topic of increasing concern to many Indonesians with the emergence of a free mass media after 1998. Allen (2009; notes that interest in new pornography legislation was building through the late 1990s, and Blackwood (2007) argues that momentum for a bill took off after attempts by conservative religious groups to reform national sexuality codes were bogged down in the early 2000s. Older laws providing some forms of censorship remained on the books but some Indonesians began to feel that television shows and magazines were featuring more risqué subject matter, such as previously taboo topics like sex before marriage, or women wearing miniskirts or swimsuits.…”

Redefiniendo las identidades <em>waria</em> en la Indonesia contemporánea

“…Si bien desde el imaginario colectivo se ha construido históricamente Indonesia como un lugar de importante pluralismo de género, desde las estancias estatales se ha acentuado tradicionalmente la promoción de unos marcados principios de género heteronormativos (Blackwood 2007;Suryakusuma 1996) y la discriminación de las minorías sexuales, las cuales han sido consideradas como amenazas a la estabilidad, el bienestar y los fundamentos del estado (pancasila). La caída del régimen dictatorial propició que el país entrara en un proceso de crecimiento y apertura al exterior, dando lugar a importantes cambios a nivel político, económico y de género (Brenner 2011;Burhanudin y van Dijk 2013;Heryanto 2008;Robinson 2008).…”

“…La creciente emergencia de minorías sexuales en la escena pública del país ha sido interpretada por el Estado como una amenaza que perturba la estabilidad y el bienestar de la nación. A su vez, el creciente incremento de organizaciones islámicas de corte radical que pretenden imponer visiones estrictas de la fe islámica han comenzado a criminalizar interpretaciones más liberales del islam (Picard y Madinier 2011) y aquellas prácticas sexuales alejadas de los discursos heteronormativos (Blackwood 2007;Boellstorff 2004b (Ilmi y David 2014;Nuño 2016). En la actualidad, los cánones y discursos estéticos y de belleza en Indonesia se han convertido en recursos para describir categorías sociales, al igual que ocurría con el color de piel en la época colonial (Prasetvaningsih 2007;Saraswati 2013).…”