Marak Sexual Harassment Cases, Commission III of the DPR Requests Education for TPKS Bill to Enter Campus

Member of Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Abdullah, asked the government and other parties concerned to carry out education on the Sexual Violence Crime Law (TPKS Law) in the campus environment.

Abdullah said this in response to the case of alleged sexual harassment that resurfaced involving students of the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia (FH UI) to alleged harassment through a song by a student association at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB).

According to Abdullah, this phenomenon confirms that the problem of sexual violence in the world of education is repetitive and systemic. He also urged all educational units to conduct a thorough evaluation of activities, traditions, and patterns of interaction that have the potential to contain elements of sexual harassment.

"This is an opportunity to conduct a total evaluation. All activities and traditions in the educational environment must be reviewed so that they do not become a space for the normalization of sexual harassment. The educational environment must be a safe space, especially for women," said Abdullah, Wednesday, April 15.

Abdullah emphasized that the evaluation must prioritize the protection of victims. He also reminded that there should be no revictimization due to the wrong handling.

"The victim must be protected, not blamed or humiliated. Improper handling can make the victim experience repeated trauma," he said.

Abdullah also encouraged the involvement of independent institutions such as Komnas Perempuan and Komnas HAM in the evaluation process to ensure the objectivity of handling cases.

"The involvement of independent institutions is important to ensure that the investigation is transparent, accountable, and on the side of the victims," he said.

Furthermore, members of the commission dealing with law assessed that the prevalence of sexual harassment cases was also triggered by the low understanding of the academic community regarding the form and limits of sexual violence. Including verbal and digital ones as regulated in Law Number 12 of 2022 concerning Sexual Violence Crimes (TPKS Law).

For this reason, Abduh encouraged collaboration between the government, law enforcement, and related institutions to strengthen education on the prevention of sexual violence in the educational environment, where the TPKS Law must be included.

"Socialization and education on the TPKS Law must be carried out periodically. In addition, it is necessary to develop a curriculum for preventing sexual violence based on understanding of consent that is implemented at all levels of education, from schools to universities," explained Abduh.

The PKB legislator from the Central Java VI District also emphasized that without concrete and systematic steps, the world of education risks continuing to be an unsafe space for learners. Abduh said this should be a concern for all parties.

"If this is not seriously corrected, we will continue to see similar cases repeated. Education should not only produce smart graduates, but also people who are ethical and respect the dignity of others," concluded Abduh.