15 illegal gamblers caned
2005-06-24 13:23
Bireun - Fifteen men were publicly flogged in Indonesia on Friday for illegal gambling - the first time the lash had been used as punishment in the world's most populous Muslim country.
The whippings - carried out by provincial religious officials wearing masks to conceal their identities - took place in Aceh, a highly conservative region that enjoyed semi-autonomy from the central government because of a long-running Islamic insurgency.
Indonesia had a policy of secularism, and attempts by religious hardliners to have Islamic Sharia law, including corporal punishment, adopted nationally had failed.
But, Aceh implemented a version of Sharia in 2001 under a special autonomy package offered by the government to try to diffuse the rebellion.
Rebels 'support no corporal punishment'
The level of public support for whipping among Aceh's 4.1 million people was unclear, and many observers viewed Friday's punishments as an attempt by the government to undercut support for the rebels. The rebels said they didn't support corporal punishment.
After traditional Friday prayers, the 15 convicts were brought to a stage erected outside a mosque in Bireun town, where about 600 men, woman and children gathered to watch.
Religious officials wearing masks struck the men on their backs with one-meter rattan canes.
The blows were firm, but did not break the skin and the men did not appear in extreme pain. At least one smiled and laughed during his punishment.
Zakaria, who at 60 was the oldest man beaten, said: "I am ready to be punished, but what about everyone else, including big time corruptors and thieves. They should also be whipped."
Separatist rebels, govt troops
Aceh, which lost about 130 000 people to the December 26 tsunami, had been wracked by 29 years of fighting between separatist rebels and government troops.
Scores of human rights abuses had gone unpunished in the province, and corruption was rife.
Other commentators questioned why the men, all of whom were poor traders or labourers caught gambling small amounts of money, were chosen to be punished.
Koran Tempo said: "The eyes of the law should look at the crimes against humanity perpetrated against the Acehnese people during military operations not just gambling. This is not justice."
Men pays $50 to prosecuter
Accusations of corruption - which was endemic in Indonesia - surfaced ahead of Friday's beating.
Several of those beaten said they had paid the equivalent of $50 to a prosecutor to escape the punishment.
The prosecutor, Erwin Nasution, acknowledged that he received the money, but said it was "a gesture of thanks from the men because the sentence had been formally passed down".
It was unclear whether the bribery allegations would be investigated.
Under Aceh's version of Sharia, women were forced to wear head coverings and the sale of alcohol - freely available elsewhere in Indonesia - was banned.
- AP