Indonesian couple caned 140 times each under Sharia law
A young couple in Indonesia’s Aceh province has been publicly caned 140 times each for having sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol, in what authorities say is one of the harshest punishments handed down since the region adopted Sharia law.
The punishment took place on Thursday in a public space, where dozens of people watched as the man and the 21-year-old woman were struck on their backs with a rattan cane. The woman eventually fainted during the caning and had to be taken away by officers to an ambulance.
Under Aceh’s Islamic criminal code, sex outside marriage carries a sentence of 100 lashes, while consuming alcohol adds another 40. Officials confirmed that both penalties were applied in full, bringing the total to 140 strokes each.
The couple were among six people punished that day for violating Islamic law. The others who were also caned included a member of the Sharia police force and his female partner, who were found alone together in a private home. They received 23 lashes each. The head of Banda Aceh’s Sharia police, Muhammad Rizal, said the officer would be dismissed from his post and stressed that there would be equal treatment of officers and citizens under the law.
“As promised, we make no exceptions, especially not for our own members. This certainly tarnishes our name,” Rizal said.
Aceh is the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia that enforces Sharia law, following special autonomy that was granted in 2001. Public caning is used to punish a range of offences, including gambling, alcohol consumption and sexual relations outside marriage.
Rights groups have long criticised the practice. Azharul Husna, the Aceh coordinator for the Indonesian rights group Kontras, said that canings are not properly regulated and argued that procedures should be “improved” to better protect and support those subjected to the punishment.
While public flogging remains common in the deeply conservative province, cases involving such a high number of lashes are rare. Observers say the severity of this sentence is among the toughest seen in recent years.
