Bali governor says tourists will not be prosecuted for sex outside of marriage

Last week, the Indonesian parliament passed a bill that would ban unmarried couples from cohabitation and make sex outside of marriage a criminal offence. However, the innovation, which will become a practice in three years, will not affect tourists, said Bali Governor Wayan Coster. It is reported by The Reuters.

Tourists coming to the Indonesian island "do not need to worry" about changes to the country's penal code, Koster said, as they risk nothing. Bali authorities ensure that “when registering at any tourist facility, such as hotels, villas, apartments, guest houses, lodges and spas, there will be no verification of marital status,” Coster promised.

Bali's governor also dismissed reports that the new law scared tourists who rushed to cancel booked plane tickets and hotel rooms. According to Koster, data from tour operators and airlines prove that the number of foreigners planning to visit Bali from December 2022 to March 2023 has increased.

However, Maulana Yusran, deputy head of Indonesia's tourism industry council, said the new code is "absolutely counterproductive", especially now that tourism is starting to recover from the pandemic.

The United Nations has expressed its concern about threats to civil liberties. In addition to extramarital relations, the provisions of the new criminal code also include insulting the president, the national flag and state institutions as crimes.