July 30 is annually celebrated as the Day against the Trafficking in Persons. The United Nations’ International Labor Organization (ILO) data showed that there were currently about 21 million people trafficked and subsequently employed into forced labor, including sex workers.

In the context of Indonesia, the 2016 Annual Trade Report issued by the US Embassy and Consulate in Indonesia stated that Indonesia was one of the main origin, destination and transit countries. Indonesian men, women and children have become forced laborers and victims of the sex trade. Each province in Indonesia is the origin and destination of trafficking in persons.

The main report in the 2017 July-August edition of the Indonesian Update is “Finding the Right Policies for Combating Trafficking in Women in Indonesia”. On legal issues, it discusses ” Should We Change the Law for Civil Society Organizations?”. On political affairs, it discusses “The Polemics over the Threshold for the 2019 Presidential Elections”. On social affairs, it talks about “the Two-way Policy to Deal with Urbanization “.

The regular publication of the Indonesian Update with its actual themes is expected to help policy makers in government and business environment — as well as academics, think tanks, and other elements of civil society, both within and outside the country, to get the actual information and contextual analysis of economic, legal, political, cultural and social developments in Indonesia, as well as to understand the public policy in Indonesia.

Happy Reading.