BANDA ACEH: An Indonesian man who worked for a clerical organisation that advises a local government on Islamic law has been caned in public for adultery, an official said on Friday.

Mukhlis bin Mohammad, 46, a member of the Aceh Ulema Council (MPU), was caned 28 times on Thursday in a public park by a religious officer, the official said.

The woman he had sexual relationship with was flogged, also in public, receiving 23 lashes.

The punishments took place in ultra-conservative Aceh, the sole province in Indonesia that applies Sharia law. It was granted autonomy in 2001.

Public floggings and canings — which many Acehnese support — have become common there since they were introduced in 2005, and are administered for a range of offences including theft and gambling. The province outlawed homosexuality in 2014.

MPU advised the Aceh government in drafting its current version of Sharia. Mukhlis bin Mohammad’s role in the organisation was not disclosed.

Husaini Wahab, a senior official in Aceh Besar district, said canings were meant to serve as a reminder to locals to adhere to the Islamic criminal code.

“It doesn’t matter whether he is an ulema, an imam, or an ordinary citizen, the government does not discriminate,” he said, adding that Mohammad could no longer belong to the MPU.

Some human rights groups have called for public floggings and canings to be discontinued.

Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, is home to a number of religious and ethnic minorities and has been seen as an example of how democracy and Islam can co-exist. But rising conservatism has in recent years spurred religious intolerance there, according to some critics.

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2019