SCLS
Volume 4 Issue 1 June 2026

FROM PUNISHMENT TO RECOVERY: OPTIMIZING RESTITUTION IN JUDICIAL DECISIONS ON SEXUAL VIOLENCE CASES

Jea Meysa Maharani Riyadi Putri (Faculty of Law, Universitas Sriwijaya)
Rd. Muhammad Ikhsan (Faculty of Law, Universitas Sriwijaya)
Arya Mandala (Faculty of Law, Universitas Sriwijaya)



Article Info

Publish Date
29 Jun 2026

Abstract

Sexual violence is a human rights violation that causes physical, psychological, social, and economic harm to victims. In Indonesian criminal law, victim recovery is an essential aspect, one of which is realized through restitution as regulated in Law Number 12 of 2022 concerning Criminal Acts of Sexual Violence. However, its implementation in judicial practice remains inconsistent. This study aims to analyze the position of restitution in judges’ considerations and assess its function as an instrument for restoring victims’ rights. Using normative legal research with statutory and case approaches, the study finds that restitution is often applied inconsistently and tends to depend on judges’ individual considerations. It is frequently limited to measurable material losses or omitted entirely, resulting in suboptimal victim recovery. This indicates that the victim recovery paradigm has not been fully implemented in criminal justice practice. Therefore, restitution needs to be reoriented as an integral component in adjudicating sexual violence cases to align with the principle of victim protection.

Copyrights © 2026






Journal Info

Abbrev

SCLS

Publisher

Subject

Law, Crime, Criminology & Criminal Justice

Description

Sriwijaya Crimen Legal Studies (SCLS) is a journal in the field of law that publishes articles which include but not limited to articles with the themes: Administrative Crime, Juvenile Delinquent, Criminal Anthropology, Criminal Sociology, Penology, Criminal Psychology, Environmental Crime, Islamic ...