JAKARTA: To escape Jakarta’s searing heat, a family of three scavengers took shelter under a leafy tree at the side of a busy street.
The Indonesian parliament is currently deliberating a revision to the Criminal Code, which is modelled after the code used by the Dutch colonial government since 1872, decades before Indonesia gained independence in 1945.Despite opposition from experts and activists who have called it outdated and ineffective, lawmakers have opted to keep the anti-homeless provision in the latest version of the Bill, although the proposed punishment has been reduced to a maximum fine of one million rupiah .
“We need to keep homelessness as a criminal offence because we cannot disregard the fact that some people have made begging a profession,” said Mr Nasir Djamil, a member of parliament from the opposition Prosperous Justice Party . “But it has been decades since we revised it and we have been deliberating on this Bill for years. We need to pass the bill first and fix all of its imperfections later,” he told CNA.
Ms Gita Damayana, executive director of the Law and Policy Study Centre , said this means the law could also criminalise the 14,000 asylum seekers stranded in Indonesia for years while waiting to be resettled in a third country. The refugees cannot work in Indonesia because they do not have work visas. They also cannot be deported because of their status as a refugee under the United Nations Refugee Convention.
“We are not criminals. We are not troublemakers. But I don’t mind going to jail. I don’t mind if they enforce the law on me. It’s better than sleeping on the streets.” Jakarta Social Affairs Agency chief Irmansyah, who goes by one name, said the city is teaching the homeless life skills while they are in the agency’s custody.Two beggars panhandling for money in the middle of the street in East Jakarta.
If Indonesia decides to fully enforce the provision, the government would have no choice but to build more prisons. That would require more funds to feed and guard the prisoners, Ms Damayana said.
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