A kiss, then cane: Woman among six publicly flogged in Indonesia's Aceh under Sharia laws

A woman in Indonesia was beaten with a cane for a public display of affection under the province's strict Sharia laws, leaving her to look for help while standing afterwards. The unnamed woman was one of six publicly flogged on Thursday in Aceh, the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia where Sharia law is enforced.

Of the six, four were punished for engaging in public affection between unrelated men and women, an act strictly prohibited under Sharia law, while two were flogged for gambling. Lash counts for the group ranged from nine to 22.

Caning serves as punishment for a broad range of violations in Aceh, including alcohol consumption, gambling, homosexual conduct, and premarital or extramarital sex. In August, the province carried out its first public caning of a woman over an alleged “live obscenity” incident, after she and a man were accused of kissing during a TikTok livestream.

Floggings at mosque grounds or town squares

The practice is designed to humiliate as much as physically punish offenders. Floggings typically take place in public settings like mosque grounds or town squares, where onlookers often record the proceedings on their phones. Rights organisations have criticised the public nature of the punishment, arguing that the resulting humiliation compounds the physical cruelty and leaves lasting psychological scars.

In response, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have continuously criticised the practice, saying it violates Indonesia's constitution and its obligations under international norms. In a statement, Amnesty said, "Caning contravenes Indonesia's constitution and is in clear violation of international human rights law and standards." "It constitutes a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and can amount to torture in violation of the UN Convention against Torture and other international covenants, to which Indonesia is a State Party."