The sexual violence prevention bill must include clauses regarding sexual violence that occurs within the institution of marriage, a political expert from the University of Pelita Harapan has said.

“In my opinion, the bill must also include clauses regarding sexual violence inside the marriage institution, hence, the bill will not only regulate sexual violence that occurs outside marriage,” political expert Emrus Sihombing told ANTARA in Jakarta on Friday.

The expert said that the possibility of sexual violence perpetrated by a spouse in a marriage, including marital rape and sexual abuse, remains high.

He expressed the hope that the sexual violence prevention bill will regulate and define the types of sexual violence that can occur in the public and private domains.

“I hope the sexual violence prevention bill will not only regulate sexual violence cases outside marriage, but also present a breakthrough in the bill by defining sexual violence inside the marriage institution,” the political expert said.

Sexual violence is one major issue that the government must promptly address because many sexual violence perpetrators have exploited their unequal power relations to press and compel their victims, Sihombing said.

“We must prevent sexual violence from recurring in the future,” he asserted.

The government must reiterate its commitment to protecting the human rights of residents by supporting the bill, and the sexual violence prevention bill must also clarify that besides women, men are equally vulnerable to fall victim to sexual violence, Sihombing said.

He urged lawmakers to consider the prevailing ethics and moral values in the society while deliberating the bill because sexual violence is not only a violation of human rights but also a violation of ethics and moral values in society.

“We must protect ourselves from sexual violence crime and the intent to commit the crime,” the political expert said.

Source: Antara News