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DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/jhp.13.2.351-384

THE PARADOX OF IMPRISONMENT: NAVIGATING HUMAN RIGHTS AND PENAL POLICY IN INDONESIA’S NEW CRIMINAL CODE

*Iqbal Kamalludin orcid scopus publons  -  Faculty of Sharia, Universitas Islam Negeri K.H. Abdurrahman Wahid Pekalongan, Indonesia
Ani Purwanti orcid scopus  -  Faculty of Law, Universitas Diponegoro, Indonesia
R. B. Sularto orcid scopus  -  Faculty of Law, Universitas Diponegoro, Indonesia
Barda Nawawi Arief  -  Faculty of Law, Universitas Diponegoro, Indonesia
Bhanu Prakash Nunna orcid scopus  -  Centre for Victimological Research and Victim Assistance (CVRVA), RV University, India

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Abstract

This study critically examines the enduring paradox of imprisonment within Indonesia’s legal system following the enactment of the New Criminal Code (Law No. 1 of 2023). While the reform formally introduces a range of progressive sentencing alternatives aimed at reducing reliance on custodial punishment, imprisonment continues to dominate both judicial practice and penal policy. This persistence reveals a structural contradiction between the normative aspirations of legal reform and the empirical reality of punitive enforcement. Through doctrinal legal research, this study demonstrates that the penal system, despite its claims of modernisation, continues to reproduce conditions that are incompatible with fundamental human rights standards. These include chronic prison overcrowding, limited access to adequate healthcare, and the infliction of psychological harm on detainees. The study further interrogates the philosophical and historical foundations that sustain the centrality of imprisonment, highlighting how entrenched punitive rationalities and institutional inertia inhibit meaningful transformation. In doing so, it reflects on the moral implications of liberty deprivation as a form of state power and situates these concerns within the broader framework of international human rights law, particularly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Mandela Rules). The findings underscore the urgency of reorienting the criminal justice system towards restorative and rehabilitative paradigms that prioritise social reintegration, accountability, and the preservation of human dignity. By exposing the limitations of the New Criminal Code in addressing the structural roots of penal overreliance, this paper advocates for a fundamental shift in legal thinking and institutional practice. It concludes that a sustainable and legitimate penal system must move beyond retributive logic towards restorative approaches that not only reduce incarceration but also strengthen respect for human rights and social justice.

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Keywords: Imprisonment; Human Rights; New Criminal Code; Restorative Justice; Penal Reform

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