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lthough a recent US Supreme Court ruling in favor of same-sex marriage may not have significant impact on Indonesia, religious leaders say that the landmark decision will inspire recognition of the rights of homosexuals in the country with the largest Muslim population in the world.

Abdul Mu'€™ti, deputy secretary-general of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia'€™s second-largest Islamic organization, said that the impact of the court ruling was inevitable and might encourage support for same-sex marriage in the country.

'€œI would say it would impact Indonesia due to the advancement in human interactions today,'€ Mu'€™ti told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

'€œ[The public] has witnessed similar movements in this country before the US court made the decision,'€ Mu'€™ti said, adding that members of the urban middle-income bracket were likely to be the most impacted given their secular and progressive views on human rights issues.

According to Mu'€™ti, the ruling will impact the urban middle class in two ways.

'€œFirst, psychologically, urban society will be motivated to bring similar cases to the state. They will raise same-sex marriage as a human right that needs state protection. Second, politically, they will say there are already countries that have legalized same-sex marriage,'€ Mu'€™ti explained.

A similar response was voiced by the secretary-general of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), Gomar Gultom, who said the US court ruling would trigger a similar response from related groups in Indonesia, no matter how small.

'€œIt is likely to have an impact although not really significant,'€ Gomar told the Post on Monday.

According to Gomar, there are many Indonesians who have accepted same-sex marriage but do not voice their concerns because it is still considered taboo in Indonesia.

Both Mu'€™ti and Gomar agreed that Indonesians concerned with human rights issues would be influenced to fight for the recognition of same-sex marriage in the country. However, both said the fight would take a long time due to the overall nature of Indonesian society, which is bound by religion and culture.

'€œIn Indonesia, in order for a marriage to be legally recognized, it should be conducted within a religious ritual which the bride and groom submit to,'€ Gomar said.

The Indonesian Supreme Court recently refused to explicitly recognize interfaith marriage in the country.

On Friday, the US Supreme Court made a ruling in favor of same-sex marriage. The court ruled 5-4 that the Constitution'€™s guarantees of due process and equal protection under the law meant that states could not ban same-sex marriages. With the landmark ruling, gay marriage becomes legal in all 50 US states.

The US court decision has brought hope to gay rights activists across the globe that the decision will change attitudes in their countries, just like a same-sex marriage ruling in Europe changed attitudes in the US.

In Indonesia, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people still find it hard to fight for recognition in public let alone have their sexual identity recognized by the law because Indonesian tradition, along with the country'€™s six recognized religions, still consider LGBT people taboo.

Indonesian law does not specifically prohibit LGBT activities but advocates have reportedly been attacked by certain groups who consider LGBT people deviant.

Advocates are also stigmatized when they voice their concerns in public.

'€œThere will be resistance, violence. I could be killed, my organization might be terrorized,'€ said Hartoyo, head of Suara Kita, an LGBT rights organization.

'€œThey [the US government] might use the United Nations as a channel to do that, or to make a convention to protect LGBTs,'€ he added. (saf)