Although several government officials have expressed their support for the prosecutors’ demand for the death penalty for a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) teacher accused of the rape of his students, activists have questioned the deterrent effect of the death penalty in cases of sexual abuse.

The indictment has become the latest case to spark a debate over the effectiveness of capital punishment in Indonesia, which is often handed down to drug convicts and has long been questioned by rights activists as it does not appear to deter others from committing similar crimes.

Prosecutors demanded on Tuesday that the panel of judges at Banding District Court, West Java, sentence Herry Wirawan, the defendant in the case, to death for alleged rape and violence against children, a crime punishable under the 2016 Child Protection Law.

Source:
courtesy of THE JAKARTA POST

by Nur Janti (The Jakarta Post)

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