Sharia police gang raped Acehnese woman

Three members of Acehnese Sharia Police, known as Wilayatul Hisbah, have admitted of a gang rape on a woman inmate. Two of them have been arrested, one is still a fugitive. The woman was caught along with his boyfriend for an alleged violation of 2003 Sharia Public Indecency Bylaw.

Langsa police chief Yosi Muhamartha told Detik.com yesterday that the rapers have admitted the gang rape at Wilayatul Hisbah's detention center in Gampong Tualang, Tengoh. The Jakarta Post reported on Wednesday that the woman was gang-raped by three sharia policemen during her interrogation. Based on a medical report issued by the Langsa General Hospital, the victim suffered a severe hemorrhage due to the rape. The Aceh Ulema Association has condemned the rape and urged authorities to hand out heavy punishment to the suspects, saying the immoral act had tainted the implementation of Islamic sharia law in Aceh.

Well, that's not entirely new. In April 2007, one sharia police was arrested for adultery in Banda Aceh.

Well, like the Post's view, this is a serious blow to the credibility and morality of sharia police in Aceh province. Sharia police was established in 2002, and to date, according to Kompas.com, they have punished 126 people, mainly gamblers and drunks with caning as the most extreme punishment.

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