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View all search resultsAceh orders sex segregation in vehicles, public
Authorities told civil servants and members of the public of the opposite sex who had no family relations “not to gather in public spaces, quiet places, as well as in vehicles”, according to a circular issued last week.
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uthorities in ultra-conservative Aceh province had ordered men and women who were not immediately related or married to stay apart in vehicles and public places, the local government said on Thursday as it sought to tighten Islamic law.
Aceh is the only province in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country that imposes sharia.
Authorities told civil servants and members of the public of the opposite sex who had no family relations “not to gather in public spaces, quiet places, as well as in vehicles”, according to a circular issued last week.
It was issued as part of efforts to “shape a generation that faithfully adheres to Islamic values in their daily lives” by Indonesia’s 100th independence anniversary in 2045, Aceh provincial spokesperson Muhammad MTA told AFP on Thursday.
“The Aceh generations will not only be capable of competing globally but also capable of maintaining Islam, which is integrated into the customs, culture and everyday life of the people of Aceh.”
Muhammad said the new order was a “preventative” move by the local government after it consulted Islamic clerics.
The consequences for breaching the order were unclear.
Despite widespread criticism, public whipping is a common punishment for a range of offenses in the province, including gambling, alcohol consumption and relations outside marriage.
Aceh was given the right to implement sharia under broad autonomy granted by Jakarta in 2001 as part of efforts to curb separatist sentiment.
Khalwat, or “close proximity”, is also punishable under Aceh’s religious law, which bars Muslims from being alone with members of the opposite sex before marriage.
The province is an Islamic stronghold in the country, which constitutionally recognizes six major religions and broadly endorses moderate Islam.
But conservative forms of Islam have become more popular in the country since the fall in 1998 of dictator Soeharto, who kept the country running along secular lines.
Muslim cleric Panji Gumilang was arrested in West Java province last week on charges that included blasphemy after his Al-Zaytun Islamic boarding school allowed women to preach and pray beside men.
