 |
| A cadet telling her application tale (x) |
Female police cadets in Indonesia must jump through the
standard hoops of becoming an official officer, but unlike their male
counterparts they must pass a particularly unscrupulous margin. Applicants
report having to undergo a painful virginity test in order to be placed on the
force. Indonesia's Chief Police Regulation No. 5/2009 requires that all women
in training must first fulfill an “obstetrics and gynecology” exam to gauge
their physical health. In 2010, the head of police personnel decreed that
virginity testing would be abolished but this prerequisite is still mentioned
on the official police recruitment site, and policewomen widely report having
had to withstand the traumatic test.
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which
has been ratified by Indonesia, states that “virginity tests" are
"cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment." The ICCPR denounces this practice so as “to protect
both the dignity and the physical and mental integrity of the individual.” It
can also be said of this practice that "Because men are not subjected to
virginity testing, the practice constitutes discrimination against women as it
has the effect or purpose of denying women on a basis of equality with men the
right to work as police officers." These notions resemble those in Article
23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that finds "Everyone has
the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favorable
conditions of work and to protection against unemployment," and is
augmented by the caveat in Article 2 which states that "Everyone is
entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without
distinction of any kind, such as...sex."
Sources
Indonesia: Virginity Tests for Female Police
No comments:
Post a Comment