Skip to main content

punk lovers in the lives of Aceh people

Dozens of young men and women have been detained for being "punk" and disturbing the peace in Aceh, Indonesia's most devoutly Muslim province. They are being held in a remedial school, where they are undergoing "re-education" .

Rights groups have expressed concern after photographs emerged of the young men having their mohawks and funky hairstyles shaved off by Aceh's police. They look sullen and frightened as they are forced into a communal bath. But Aceh's police say they are not trying to harm the youths, they are trying to protect them. The 64 punks, many of whom are from as far away as Bali or Jakarta, were picked up on Saturday night during a local concert. 

Aceh police spokesman Gustav Leo says there have been complaints from residents nearby. The residents did not like the behaviour of the punks and alleged that some of them had approached locals for money. Mr Leo stressed that no-one had been charged with any crime, and there were no plans to do so. 

They have now been taken to a remedial school in the Seulawah Hills, about 60km (37 miles) away from the provincial capital Banda Aceh. "They will undergo a re-education so their morals will match those of other Acehnese people," says Mr Leo. But activists say the manner in which the young people have been treated is humiliating and a violation of human rights. 

Aceh Human Rights Coalition chief Evi Narti Zain says the police should not have taken such harsh steps, accusing them of treating children like criminals. "They are just children, teenagers, expressing themselves," she says. "Of course there are Acehnese people who complained about them - but regardless of that, this case shouldn't have been handled like this. They were doused with cold water, and their heads were shaved - this is a human rights violation. Their dignity was abused."

But Mr Leo disagrees. It is the second time the police have cracked down on punk culture in Aceh. "We didn't arrest them, they haven't committed any criminal offence," he says. "They are Aceh's own children - we are doing this for their own good. Their future could be at risk. We are re-educating them so they don't shame their parents."

This is the second time Aceh's police have clamped down on punks in the province, which is the only province in Indonesia allowed to implement shariah law. There is a thriving underground punk music scene in Aceh, but many punk-lovers are viewed suspiciously by local residents. Many of the young teens sport outrageous hairstyles, in keeping with punk culture, but against the norms of the keenly religious in Aceh. 

Aceh is one of the most devout Muslim provinces in Indonesia, and observers say it has becoming increasingly more conservative since Islamic law was implemented a few years ago.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Greenpeace boycott Palm oil products Duta Palma

Environmental organization Greenpeace India has demanded that all Indian palm oil importers and corporate consumers immediately stop palm oil sourcing from Indonesian companies like Duta Palma who make palm oil by destroying forests and tiger habitat in Indonesia. An investigative report issued by Greenpeace Indonesia released on Thursday links India's growing palm oil imports and corporate apathy to Duta Palma's destruction of hundreds of acres of Indonesian rainforests and tiger habitat in complete disregard of Indonesian government&# 39;s moratorium on such activities in the rainforest. Big Indian corporates like Ruchi Soya, Adani -Wilmar, Godrej Industries, Parle, Britannia are among many who use Indonesian palm oil in their products on a large scale.  "Duta Palma's dirty oil could well be entering into their supply chains. Yet, so far, no Indian company has taken any visible steps to clean up their supply chain, to delink their brands from the ...

Australia acknowledge INDONESIAN not a terrorist state

INDONESIA, the world's most populous Muslim nation and the site of more Australian deaths at the hands of terrorists than any other country, will not be included in a list of 10 countries targeted for toughened visa screening rules aimed at thwarting terror attacks. As Kevin Rudd released his government's long-awaited counter-terrorism white paper yesterday, The Australian has learnt that Indonesia, Pakistan and India will not be among the 10 countries singled out for for toughened visa screening. This is despite those countries playing host to the overwhelming number of regional terror attacks.Yemen and Somalia -- identified in the white paper as the emerging epicentres of radical Islamic terrorism -- will be included.The white paper fingers home grown extremists -- as opposed to transnational groups such as al-Qa'ida -- as the main terror threat now confronting Australia.The Prime Minister said the threat of terrorism had become a "persistent and permanent feature...

Blasphemy in the name of religion

The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to bring the attention of the Human Rights Council (HRC) to violations of the right to the freedom of expression and opinion that are being engendered through the use of Indonesia’s legal provisions prohibiting blasphemy. Religious blasphemy is prohibited in Indonesia under Law No. 1/PNPS/1965, with such provisions also being later adopted within the Penal Code (KUHP) under Article 156a. Paragraph (a) of this article uses vague language, which opens the door to abusive uses of this provision, to prohibit any acts and expression of views considered to be blasphemous, and carries a maximum punishment of five years imprisonment. A similar maximum punishment is also carried by paragraph (b) of the article, which prohibits any acts and expression of views calling for others to embrace atheism. Alexander Aan is an atheist currently undergoing a trial at the Muaro Sijunjung District Court, West Sumatra. According to his lawyers from ...