Breaking the silence: the struggle of a Feminist Movement combating impunity of sexual violence against women in Indonesia

The success of GERAK Perempuan in their initial attempt to combat the impunity of sexual violence against women, has marked the rise of feminist movement in Indonesia after it has been suppressed by the New Order regime since 1965. Hence, it is important to analyse why and how GERAK Perempuan, as a feminist movement, succeeded in its struggle despite the socio-cultural challenges. The main research question is why GERAK Perempuan succeeded in urging the Government of Indonesia to ratify the Sexual Violence Crime bill into Law No. 12 of 2022. This research paper studies the main strategies used by GERAK Perempuan and it how it mobilizes resources to gain success. In addition, this research paper also discusses the main internal and external challenges faced by GERAK Perempuan and how it tackles them. The study shows that the strategies employed by GERAK Perempuan since 2018 was able to raise public awareness about the impunity of sexual violence against women and gained public support on the Sexual Violence Crime bill. Furthermore, GERAK Perempuan succeeds in lobbied the House of Representatives of Republic of Indonesia to pass the bill in 2022.