Audio By Carbonatix
A couple in Indonesia has been caned 140 times for having sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol because it violates Sharia, or Islamic religious law.
The 21-year-old woman fainted after what authorities said was a record number of strokes to be meted out in a public caning session in the Aceh province.
Three female officers took turns striking her with a rattan cane, while she cried. After she collapsed, she was carried off the stage by female officers to an ambulance.
The couple were caned on Thursday along with four others, including an officer from the Islamic police force, who were all found guilty of violating Sharia.
Caning is a common punishment for breaking Islamic law in religiously conservative Aceh, although the practice has long drawn criticism from rights groups who say it’s cruel.
Under Aceh’s Islamic criminal code, sex outside marriage is punishable by 100 strokes of the cane, while consuming alcohol carries 40 strokes.
Canings are not regulated properly, says Azharul Husna, the Aceh coordinator for Indonesian rights group Kontras, adding that the rules around such punishments should be “improved” to support people after they’re caned.
The officer from the Islamic police force was caned 23 times, as was his female partner, for being in close proximity in a private place.
He was caught alone with her in her house, Muhammad Rizal, the head of Aceh’s Islamic police force told BBC Indonesian, adding that the officer would be dismissed.
Aceh is the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia to enforce the Sharia, and punishes many of the offences with public canings.
Latest Stories
-
Hohoe United FC faces 3-season ban, demoted to Division 2
12 minutes -
Bank of Ghana in 2025: Financially impaired but operationally resilient
22 minutes -
Ghana 4x100m relay team finish fourth at World Athletics Relays 2026, miss final
29 minutes -
Beyond the UNFCCC COPS : A New Climate Coalition puts science at the heart of global action
29 minutes -
Parts of Ashanti to experience power outages; check out affected areas
39 minutes -
Ghana clinches key Pan-African Parliament role as Annoh-Dompreh takes health and labour chair
1 hour -
The clandestine network smuggling Starlink tech into Iran to beat internet blackout
1 hour -
Bank of Ghana Balances on a Knife Edge
1 hour -
Xenophobia and the African Condition: A Call for Sobriety
2 hours -
Ghana assistant coach Roger de Sa details how he got the job
2 hours -
Taiwan president visits Eswatini days after blaming China for cancelled trip
2 hours -
Regional ‘Fisheries Without Borders’ project launched to combat declining fish stocks
2 hours -
Man charged with murder and sexual assault of 5-year-old Australian girl
3 hours -
Germany says US troop withdrawal ‘foreseeable’ as Trump warns of more ‘cuts’
3 hours -
Eduwatch warns DACF formula is deepening rural education inequality
3 hours