INDONESIA: Aceh Province Considers Public Canings For Homosexuality

The deputy mayor of the capital city of Indonesia's Aceh province has called for criminalizing homosexuality with a punishment of one hundred public lashings with a cane. The Jakarta Globe reports:

Banda Aceh Deputy Mayor Illiza Sa’aduddin Djamal called homosexuality “a social disease that should be eradicated,” as she pushed for harsher bylaws against sexual behavior that runs counter to the region’s adherence to Islamic Shariah Law. The Aceh Legislative Council (DPRA) is discussing proposed changes to the province’s bylaws, including a bylaw criminalizing homosexuality. The proposed bylaw received the support of the deputy mayor, who bemoaned the fact that police were unable to punish same-sex couples under current regulations. “There is no law that could be used to charge them,” Illiza said. “The existing [regulations] only stipulate about khalwat [being in close proximity] for intimate relations between unmarried males and females.” Banda Aceh’s Shariah Police have struggled to crack down on same-sex relationships, Illiza said. Couples meet in rented rooms and pursue relationships under a veil of secrecy, she said.

An estimated 98% of Aceh's 4.5 million residents are Muslim. LGBT rights are virtually nonexistent across Indonesia, although a national bill to criminalize gay sex failed in 2003.