Two university students in Indonesia’s Aceh province were publicly caned on 27 Feb after being found guilty of engaging in gay sex, an act deemed illegal under the province’s strict syariah law.
According to The Straits Times (ST), the men, who studied at the local university, were discovered together when locals raided their rented room in Banda Aceh.
They were then handed over to syariah police, who charged them under Aceh’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws.
While homosexuality is not illegal in most parts of Indonesia, Aceh — its only province governed by Islamic law — criminalised same-sex relations in 2015.
The public flogging took place in a park in the provincial capital before midday.
One of the men, accused of initiating the relationship, was caned 82 times, while the other received 77 lashes. Their sentences were slightly reduced by three beatings due to three months spent in detention.
An AFP journalist at the scene reported that the punishment was carried out with a rattan cane as dozens of onlookers witnessed the brutal spectacle.
Medical personnel were on standby to assess the men’s condition after the flogging.
Source: Getty Images
Public caning remains a common form of punishment in Aceh, used for various offenses such as gambling, alcohol consumption, and adultery.
Under syariah law, gay sex between Muslim men or women, both locals and foreigners, is illegal and those caught engaging in gay sex face up to 100 strokes of the cane.
Adultery carries a similar punishment, while those accused without proof can still receive up to 80 lashes.
According to ST, Aceh is Indonesia’s most religiously conservative province and was granted special autonomy in 2001. It introduced Islamic law in an effort to curb a long-running separatist insurgency.
The case has once again sparked international concern over human rights abuses and the treatment of LGBTQ+ individuals in Indonesia.
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Featured image adapted from AP.