Two men in Indonesia face public lashing as ruling by an Islamic court
In Aceh, Indonesia, a province known for its conservative nature, public caning for homosexuality remains a legally sanctioned and actively enforced practice under its autonomous Sharia law, which was implemented in 2015. This controversial practice is a contentious aspect of Aceh’s governance and legal system, receiving international condemnation.
The most recent case, as of August 2025, involved two men aged 20 and 21 who were sentenced by the Islamic Shariah court in Banda Aceh to 80 lashes each for public hugging and kissing, considered legally as sexual acts under local Sharia regulations. The trials for such cases, including those related to adultery or homosexuality, are often held behind closed doors, with limited public access.
The application of Sharia law in Aceh was part of the 2006 peace deal ending a separatist conflict, granting Aceh autonomy to implement Islamic law more strictly than other Indonesian provinces. Initially applicable only to Muslims, the law was extended in 2015 to include non-Muslims, who comprise about 1% of the province’s population.
The law allows up to 100 lashes for various morality offenses, including same-sex relations, adultery, gambling, and immodest dress. Caning is carried out publicly with breaks and medical treatment after every 20 strokes, often causing severe physical and psychological harm.
Human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, denounce these punishments as discriminatory and violating international treaties protecting minority rights and freedom from cruel punishment. Indonesia’s secular central government, despite granting Aceh the right to implement the law in 2006 as part of a peace deal, lacks the authority to overturn Aceh’s Sharia law, as the national legal code does not criminalize homosexuality.
In February, the same court sentenced two men to public caning for gay sex after neighborhood vigilantes in Banda Aceh suspected them of being gay and broke into their rented room, catching them naked and hugging each other. The two men were arrested in April for engaging in what the court deemed were sexual acts in a city park bathroom.
The Islamic Shariah District Court in Banda Aceh sentenced two men to public caning for homosexuality on Monday. The judges decided on a lenient punishment for the men, who were outstanding students, were polite in court, cooperated with authorities, and had no previous convictions. The prosecutors initially sought 85 strokes of the cane for each of the men, but did not appeal after the lighter sentence was issued.
Aceh is the only province in Indonesia that observes a version of Islamic law, making it unique among the country's provinces. The province, more conservative than the rest of the country, has sentenced men to public caning multiple times for engaging in same-sex acts. This practice continues to spark international concern and debate, highlighting the ongoing tension between religious and secular laws in Indonesia.
- Amnesty International and other human rights organizations vehemently condemn the application of Sharia law in Aceh's health-and-wellness and sexual-health issues, as they deem these punishments discriminatory and violating international treaties.
- The ongoing practices of caning for homosexuality in Aceh's political landscape, despite international outcry, have led to general-news headlines, sparking debate about the intersection of religious and secular laws within Indonesia.
- In the realm of crime-and-justice, Aceh's Islamic Shariah court accused two men of homosexuality, sentencing them to public caning, while a lighter sentence was issued due to their outstanding academic records and cooperative behavior with authorities.
