Criminal Law Policy in an Effort to Hand the Criminal Act of Cohabitation Without Marriage Family from the Perspective of Indonesian Criminal Law Reform

Abstract

The rapid evolution of criminal behavior has drawn considerable public attention to the issue of cohabitation without legal marital ties. Up to the year 2025, criminal law policy in Indonesia has not yet specifically regulated the criminal act of cohabitation. However, in its development, the practice of cohabitation has undergone significant changes in both form and manner. This legal study addresses two main issues: first, how criminal law policy regulates the criminal act of cohabitation under the current Indonesian positive law; and second, how criminal law policy should address the criminal act of cohabitation from the perspective of Indonesian criminal law reform. This research employs a normative juridical method to answer both of these issues. The data collection method used is a literature study based on primary legal materials. The findings of the study indicate that, to date, criminal law policy concerning the offense of cohabitation has not been expressly regulated and has only been associated with offenses against decency or adultery. However, in the upcoming Indonesian Criminal Code (Law No. 1 of 2023), specifically Article 412, there is a provision that regulates the criminal act of cohabitation, which can serve as a legal basis for law enforcement in handling this offense. In the future, the idea of criminal law reform through the reformulation of provisions on the criminal act of cohabitation should involve classifying cohabitation as an ordinary offense and imposing heavier criminal sanctions, while taking into account sociological, historical, and comparative approaches.