Legal Protection and the Implementation of Rights of Pregnant Women in Detention: A Case Study of the Class IIA Women’s Correctional Facility in Medan, Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30863/ajmpi.v11i1.11266Keywords:
Pregnant Women in Detention;, Legal Protection;, Correctional Health Services;, Gender Justice;, Human Rights Implementation.Abstract
This study investigates the legal protection and implementation of rights for pregnant women in detention at the Class IIA Women’s Correctional Facility in Medan, Indonesia. Although Indonesian correctional law and human rights instruments provide normative guarantees, their realization is constrained by structural and institutional challenges. Using an empirical juridical approach and qualitative case study design, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with key prison staff, direct observation, and analysis of relevant legal and policy documents, including the Directorate General of Corrections’ Basic Health Service Standards. Findings indicate that while basic healthcare, medical referrals, nutritional support, and partial psychosocial services are available, their effectiveness is limited by the absence of obstetric specialists, lack of dedicated housing for pregnant detainees, budget constraints, and insufficient continuous psychosocial support. This highlights a gap between formal legal guarantees and substantive protection, demonstrating that formal equality alone cannot address the differentiated needs of pregnant detainees. Policy recommendations include measurable operational standards, intersectoral integration with local healthcare services, gender- and human rights-based staff training, and performance-oriented evaluation. The study contributes to socio-legal scholarship by emphasizing that effective protection of vulnerable groups depends on both normative frameworks and institutional capacity oriented toward human-centered justice.
References
Alrianto, Mulyadi, Asriadi Zainuddin, and Lilis Pramukti. “Challenges and Implementation of Human Rights in the Personality Development of Elderly Prisoners.” Al Adalah: Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam 9, no. 2 (2024): 157–74.
Angkasa. “DEPRIVATION OF INMATES IN CONDUCTING IMPRISONMENT AND GUIDANCE IN PENITENTIARY ON VICTIMOLOGY PERSPECTIVE.” Journal of Indonesian Legal Studies 5, no. 1 (2020): 53–74. https://doi.org/10.15294/jils.v5i1.38520.
Baker, B. “Improving Care for Incarcerated Pregnant Women: Policy Implications for Advancing Maternal and Child Health.” Nursing Outlook 74, no. 1 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2025.102608.
Barberet, R L. Women, Crime and Criminal Justice: A Global Enquiry. Women, Crime and Criminal Justice: A Global Enquiry, 2014. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203726440.
Chuldun, I, F Rokhman, and W Widiyanto. “Women Between Jail:A Discourse of Women Protection on Indonesia Correctional Act.” Journal of Law and Legal Reform 5, no. 2 (2024): 839–68. https://doi.org/10.15294/jllr.v5i2.13067.
Darmawati. “Pembaharuan Model Penilaian Pembinaan Narapidana Residivis Berbasis Teknologi.” Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam 7, no. 1 (2022): 74–93. https://doi.org/10.35673/ajhpi.v7i1.1682.
Hamja. “PEMBARUAN KEBIJAKAN PEMIDANAAN DALAM RANGKA MENGATASI FAKTOR PENYEBAB OVERCROWDING LEMBAGA PEMASYARAKATAN DI INDONESIA.” Masalah-Masalah Hukum 53, no. 3 (2024): 261–70.
Hout, M C Van, and J Wessels. “Human Rights and the Invisible Nature of Incarcerated Women in Post-Apartheid South Africa: Prison System Progress in Adopting the Bangkok Rules.” International Journal of Prisoner Health 18, no. 3 (2022): 300–315. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPH-05-2021-0045.
Iklima Salsabil, D M, and I W P Pratomo. “Human Rights Guarantee for Prisoners in the Perspective of Correctional System in Indonesia.” Lex Scientia Law Review 1, no. 1 (2017): 33–40. https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85175103046&partnerID=40&md5=3da1e4c9fe8f6da2b1e9c29b5ae7f2a3.
Jupri. “Pemberian Hak Remisi Bagi Narapidana Narkotika Berstatus Justice Collaborator.” Jurnal Al-Adalah : Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam 5, no. 1 (2020): 79–99. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.35673/ajmpi.v5i1.611.
“Keputusan Direktur Jendral Pemasyarakatan Kementerian Hukum Dan Hak Asasi Manusia Republik Indonesia Nomor PAS-32.PK.01.07.01 Tahun 2016 Tentang Standar Pelayanan Dasar Perawatan Kesehatan Di LAPAS, RUTAN, BAPAS, LPKA Dan LPAS.” KEMENTERIAN HUKUM DAN HAK ASASI MANUSIA REPUBLIK INDONESIA, 2016.
Kumtanat, T, and S Rungreangkulkij. “Women Behind Bars: A Qualitative Study of Gender-Sensitive Health Care Experiences in a Model Prison in Northeastern Thailand.” Pacific Rim International Journal of Nursing Research 30, no. 1 (2026): 135–49. https://doi.org/10.60099/prijnr.2026.276773.
Lines, R. “The Right to Health of Prisoners in International Human Rights Law.” In International Journal of Prisoner Health, 4:3–53, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449200701862145.
Mackay, A. “The Relevance of the United Nations Mandela Rules for Australian Prisons.” Alternative Law Journal 42, no. 4 (2017): 279–85. https://doi.org/10.1177/1037969X17732706.
Nawawi, Jumriani, Irfan Amir, and Muljan. “Problematika Gagasan Larangan Mantan Napi Korupsi Menjadi Calon Anggota Legislatif.” Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam 3, no. 2 (2019): 141–55.
Nuroini, Indi, Rengga Kusuma, Ichsan Sjuhudi, Muhammad Ryan, and Ramadhani Miano. “Legal Review of the Implementation of Human Rights in Handling Cases of Violence Against Women.” Al Adalah: Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam 10, no. 1 (2025): 184–200. https://doi.org/10.54957/jolas.v4i6.643.4.
“Perkuat Layanan Kesehatan , Ditjenpas Gelar Konstek Standar Kesehatan Di Lapas Dan Rutan Perempuan.” Https://Www.Ditjenpas.Go.Id, 2025. https://www.ditjenpas.go.id/perkuat-layanan-kesehatan-ditjenpas-gelar-konstek-standar-kesehatan-di-lapas-dan-rutan-perempuan .
Rahmah, A, J Blogg, N Silitonga, M Aman, and R M Power. “The Health of Female Prisoners in Indonesia.” International Journal of Prisoner Health 10, no. 4 (2014): 252–61. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPH-08-2013-0038.
Shlafer, R J, J Stang, D Dallaire, C A Forestell, and W Hellerstedt. “Best Practices for Nutrition Care of Pregnant Women in Prison.” Journal of Correctional Health Care 23, no. 3 (2017): 297–304. https://doi.org/10.1177/1078345817716567.
Suhartini, E. “Legal Perspective of Medical Care System for Prisoners and Detainees.” In International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8:406–12, 2017. https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85029896509&partnerID=40&md5=dd19458932156d55b216ec19be883a0a.
Widyawati, A, D Latifiani, H Rahmasari, and A Adhari. “Optimizing Oversight: Developing an Ideal Framework for Supervision Prisoners’ Rights Allocation.” Indonesian Journal of Criminal Law Studies 9, no. 2 (2024): 185–206. https://doi.org/10.15294/ijcls.v9i2.50313.
Widyawati, Anis, Muhammad Azil Maskur, Rohadhatul Aisy, Papontee Teerapan, and Heru Setyanto. “The Urgency of Supervision Institutions in Implementing Prisoners ’ Rights as an Effort to Restructure Criminal Execution Laws.” Jambura Law Review 7, no. 01 (2025): 127–51. https://doi.org/10.33756/jlr.v7i1.27595.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Sophia Harahap, Rasina Padeni Nasution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum dan Politik Islam agree to the following terms:
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.Â
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
