The Jakarta Globe on August 23 reported:
Security authorities in the deeply religious Indonesian province of Aceh have been forced to admit that they are clueless about how to handle a case involving the marriage of two lesbians, saying same-sex marriages are not dealt with under local Islamic laws.
The “confusion” began when authorities arrested Ranto, The 25-year-old woman, however, turned out to be Rohani, who was married to Nuraini, 21.
“We are really confused,” Muddasir, the head of Southwest Aceh’s Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday, “Because there are no qanun [Islamic bylaws] to handle such cases.”
Islamic bylaws in Aceh prohibit gambling, alcohol, ‘khalwat’ or close proximity between members of the opposite sex but not, it seems, lesbianism.
In 2009, the Aceh provincial government passed a qanun jinayat, which included outlawing lesbianism, but it was never signed into law by Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf.
Muddasir added that the couple will "still be charged, maybe with identity fraud, because what they did was embarrassing and forbidden by religion."
“I told them if Islamic law is applied in Aceh, they must be beheaded, burned and their ashes must be spread in the ocean.”
Reader's Comments
By the way Douglas I feel you are blessed to live in Seattle. Love that place!
There is no mention at all in the Koran that 'homosexuality is not an accepted way of life.' The only mention is a story on 'Lot and his people who practiced homosexuality and engage in sexual acts and orgies in public, and God punished them with a terrible earthquake that destroyed the whole city.'
I guess being gay out of no choice, and practising the same ethical and moral responsibility as the rest of the society, did not make being gay a crime. Unless that gay seem to go out of hand and doing stuffs which offend the general public.
Get your spelling of U.S. officials' names right before you preach to others.
Maybe same-sex couples should just device their own way of certifying their union (i prefer this word) or getting their relationship recognised (at least to people they know) instead of having to use a fake name and phony certs... They can exchange rings, matching tattoo, private party with friends and families with a simple ceremony... :)
Here's an article that documents Iraqi Islamist gangs on gay-baiting missions: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/13/iraq-gays-murdered-militias
Let me quote a paragraph: "Sitting on the floor, wearing traditional Islamic clothes and holding an old notebook, Abu Hamizi, 22, spends at least six hours a day searching internet chatrooms linked to gay websites. He is not looking for new friends, but for victims.
"It is the easiest way to find those people who are destroying Islam and who want to dirty the reputation we took centuries to build up," he said. When he finds them, Hamizi arranges for them to be attacked and sometimes killed..."
Muslim world : http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,647913,00.html
The 1st thing the gay victim said to his captors? "DO WHAT YOU WANT TO ME, BUT DO NOT TELL THEM (MY FAMILY)!!!"
I quote a paragraph:"In Baghdad a new series of murders began early this year, perpetrated against men suspected of being gay. Often they are raped, their genitals cut off, and their anuses sealed with glue. Their bodies are left at landfills or dumped in the streets. The non-profit organization Human Rights Watch, which has documented many of these crimes, has spoken of a systematic campaign of violence involving hundreds of murders. " (Spiegel)
Quote: "Islamists in East London have sparked anger after flyposting stickers which called for a gay-free zone.
The stickers were distributed around the Whitechapel, Shoreditch and Poplar areas over the weekend. Specifically, they were targeted at schools and pubs, including the gay-friendly George and Dragon.
The professionally produced, anonymous stickers say: “Arise and Warn. Gay free zone. Verily Allah is severe in punishment.”
The 'Gay free zone' slogan is within a diagonal bar across a rainbow flag. (Pink News)
Please log in to use this feature.