Teenage Lesbians in Indonesia Will Have to Undergo Therapy

A pair of teenage girls has been arrested and interrogated in Indonesia after they shared an embrace. Police in Aceh, a conservative Muslim state that practices Sharia law, detained the two for four days while they questioned them about their relationship.

Police chief Evendi Latief alleges the girls’ human rights were not violated during their extensive interrogation. Latief additionally says the teenagers “admitted” to being lesbians and “will undergo rehabilitation which involves psychologists from local Social Ministry Office.”

Graeme Reid of Human Rights Watch calls the behavior of the police into question, stating that “the arrest of two women in Aceh for everyday behaviour is an outrageous abuse of power that should be considered a threat to all Indonesians. The Indonesian government needs to press Aceh to repeal its discriminatory new bylaws.”

The law he is referring to was instated last year. It decrees that those convicted of engaging in homosexuality should be punished with 100 lashes, 100 months in jail, or a fine that equates to 1,000 grams of gold.

Homosexuality is legal in the other Indonesian states, however the age of consent is higher for gay sex than for straight sex.