The annulment of the invasive test is excellent news and should set a good precedent for other TNI branches and the National Police that have maintained the practice for decades.

Andika’s move is long overdue progress toward the protection of human rights, women’s rights and gender equality in the Indonesian armed forces. But what would be better than the Army abolishing the virginity test is the unconditional and permanent nationwide ban of the test, as regulated in an official document signed by the President of Indonesia to be honored by all Indonesians.

This is obviously not rocket science. Banning the virginity test is not a difficult decision when we all know what it is and the damage it has caused to Indonesian women and society in general.

The government should immediately ban the virginity test for three reasons. First and foremost, the test is medically unreliable, has no scientific value and has significant negative effects on the “test subjects”.

The procedure, also known blatantly as the “two-finger test”, involves a medical practitioner physically checking the hymen of female recruits to determine whether she has had intercourse. It has long been recognized, however, that the physical state of the hymen offers very little scientific proof of virginity (Josephine McDermott, 2015).

Just like other parts of the human body, the hymen differs in size and form in individuals. Some women have a very thick hymen that remains intact after intercourse. There are also women who are born with no hymen. The hymen may also change due to other factors unrelated to sexual intercourse, including but not limited to sport injury, accidents and even disease.

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