Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama is putting together a gubernatorial decree so that the city takes a more proactive approach towards protecting and ensuring justice towards victims of domestic violence.
Ahok said today that the decree would allow those who claim to be victims of domestic violence to receive free medical examinations from any of the city’s medical facilities – from hospitals to neighborhood clinics – the result of which could be used as evidence in criminal cases.
“Yes, we’ll make it free for all [domestic violence victims] so that it’s easier for them to report [to the authorities]. It’s a pity if a victim doesn’t have money [to pay for an examination],” Ahok said, as quoted by Detik today.
“In all neighborhood clinics and regional hospitals, if someone comes asking for an examination to prove domestic violence, then it’ll be free.”
Ahok did not give an estimate as to when the decree would be passed.
In 2016, the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) noted that there were 259,150 reported cases of violence against women in Indonesia in 2016, many of them domestic violence (there’s no similar study tallying male victims of domestic violence in Indonesia). A key piece of evidence in any domestic violence criminal case is the results of the medical exam. Fear that they might not be able to pay for that examination makes economically-disadvantaged victims of domestic violence especially vulnerable.
We hope that everybody can agree that this is a gubernatorial decree that needs to be passed and will hopefully remain in place even after Ahok leaves office in October.
Reader Interactions