RI issues law on discrimination of women

Antara News, Friday, October 22, 2010

Yogyakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian government has issued a law on convention of abolishing discrimination of women and girls (CEDAW), chairwoman of the Indonesian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development Sri Utari Setyawati said.

"This law and the law on violence in households, the law on eradication of people`s trade, and the law on marriage," are discussed at an international parliamentary workshop on women in Yogyakarta on Thursday.

She said all these laws need to be reminded of by the policy makers to see whether these laws are still carried out effectively.

In the marriage law, for instance, there is an article which needs to be revised, namely girls must be at least 16 years of age to get married.

"However, mentally and spiritually, 16 years are not yet ideal, and needs to be raised to 18 years, but then it will become a subject of controversy, because according to Islam 17 years is quite adequate to enter matrimony," she said.