[JURIST] Indonesia on Wednesday passed a controversial law [Jakarta Post report] allowing for harsh punishment for pedophiles, including chemical castration, implanting electronic tagging chips in violators, the death sentence, mandatory 10 year imprisonment, and state-sponsored rehabilitation. While the law was proposed in response [BBC news report] to the gang rape and murder of a 14 year old girl, some have expressed concern that the punishments are inhuman, particularly chemical castration. The Indonesian Doctors Association [official website, in Indonesian] has criticized the law stating [press release] that it is “emasculating,” and has called on members to not participate for ethical reasons. The National Commission for Women [official website] has suggested that the law be evaluated yearly to determine whether it is a deterrent or simply unnecessarily harsh punishment.

This is not the first time that Indonesia has faced criticism for, what some have considered, overly harsh punishment. In July, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein urged [JURIST report] Indonesia to halt the imminent executions of 14 individuals [JURIST report], convicted mainly for drug-related offenses. Last year a spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) urged [JURIST report] the Indonesian government to halt all executions of people convicted of drug-related offenses. Also last year Brazil and the Netherlands recalled their ambassadors from Indonesia after an Indonesian firing squad executed six convicted drug traffickers [JURIST reports], sparking international condemnation from human rights groups and foreign leaders.