Amnesty International’s Regional Research director Montse Ferrer has responded to the caning of two men in the city of Banda Aceh for having consensual same-sex sexual relations, stating:

“This public flogging of two young men under Aceh’s Islamic Criminal Code for consensual sex is a disturbing act of state-sanctioned discrimination and cruelty. This punishment is a horrifying reminder of the institutionalized stigma and abuse faced by LGBTQ+ individuals in Aceh.”

Ferrer added, “Intimate relationships between consenting adults should never be criminalized. Punishments such as flogging are cruel,inhuman and degrading and may amount to torture under international law.”

“We call on the Acehnese and Indonesian central government authorities to immediately halt these degrading practices and repeal all discriminatory bylaws that permit such violations. Aceh’s regional autonomy must not come at the expense of human rights,” Ferrer urged.

Ferrer concluded, “Indonesia, as a member of the UN Human Rights Council and a state party to the Convention Against Torture, must align its laws – including in Aceh – with its constitutional commitments to equality and non-discrimination. The criminalization of same-sex conduct and corporal punishment has no place in a just and humane society.”

Background

On August 26, two men, aged 20 and 21, were publicly flogged 76 times each in the city of banda Aceh for having consensual same-sex relations.

The panel of judges at the Banda Aceh Sharia court found them guilty of violating the Islamic Criminal Code, which forbids consensual same-sex acts.

They were arrested after allegedly engaging in sexual activity in a public restroom at the Taman Sari Park on June 16.

The defendants, identified as QH and RA, remained in custody during the judicial proceedings, which were held behind closed doors.

Citizen’s arrests are common in Aceh due to the implementation of Sharia law, which allows residents to turn people over to the Sharia police for investigation. Aceh is the only province in Indonesia that criminalizes consensual same-sex acts due to the special autonomy status that has allowed it to apply the Islamic Criminal Code since 2015.

Sharia bylaws have been in force in Aceh as the enactment of the province’s Special Autonomy Law in 2001 and are enforced by Islamic courts.

These laws in some cases provide for up to 200 lashes as punishment for offences including consensual intimacy or sexual activity for unmarried couples, consensual sex outside marriage, same-sex sexual relations, the consumption and sale of alcohol and gambling.

In February, two university students were flogged for having consensual same-sex relations in Banda Aceh.

Under international human rights law all forms of corporal punishment are prohibited as they constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment and can amount to torture. The UN Human Rights Committee and other expert human rights bodies have raised concerns about laws criminalising ‘adultery’ or other consensual sexual relations outside marriage because they violate the right to privacy.