Last month, Human Rights Watch urged Indonesian President Jokowi Widodo to protect the rights of gays and lesbians one day after his administration ordered instant messaging apps to do away with stickers containing same-sex couples; the government’s latest attempt to discourage homosexuality in the Muslim-majority nation.
In its letter, the New York based human rights group said that Indonesia’s government should publicly reprimand officials who make discriminatory remarks against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals.
“President Jokowi should urgently condemn anti-LGBT remarks by officials before such rhetoric opens the door to more abuses,” said Graeme Reid, LGBT rights director at Human Rights Watch. “The president has long championed pluralism and diversity. This is an opportunity to demonstrate his commitment.”
The government’s decision comes after social media backlash against a popular messaging app called LINE for having stickers with LGBT themes in its online store.
Ismail Cawidu, spokesperson for the Information and Communication Ministry, said that social media and messaging platforms should not endorse stickers conveying support for the country’s LGBT community.
“Social media must respect the culture and local wisdom of the country where they have large numbers of users,” he said.
Even though homosexuality is not criminalized in Indonesia, it happens to be a sensitive issue in the socially conservative country that has a population of over 250 million. At the same time, most of the country’s population –which abides by a moderate form of Islam– seems to be rather tolerant; with LGBT entertainers often making appearances on television shows.
In an official statement, LINE said that it had removed all LGBT-related stickers from its online store after receiving complaints from users. Facebook and Twitter exploded with condemnation of LINE,which is competing with WhatsApp, for endorsing gay and lesbian content.
Cawidu said that his government would also order WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, to do the same.
In January, Muhammad Nasir (Research, Technology and Higher Education Minister) said that openly gay or lesbian students should be denied entry at University of Indonesia campuses. His statement came after news that a sexuality research center was planning to offer counseling services to LGBT students.
Obviously, his comments sparked a controversy in Indonesia with human rights groups objecting his stance; but the Indonesian Ulema Council (Indonesia’s top Muslim clerical body) offered its support.
LGBT rights advocate, King Oey, pleaded for the government to abide by international treaties –signed by Indonesia– promising to protect the rights of all minorities and women.
“Gays and lesbians are not illegal in Indonesia,” Oey said. “We urge people who are concerned with human rights to not sit by silently.”
In 2014, legislators in Aceh, a conservative province in Indonesia, passed a law punishing gay sex with public caning and subjecting even non-Muslims to the region's stringent interpretation of the Islamic sharia law.
Photo Credits: Gay Times
