A 20-year-old Indonesian woman was caned after being caught standing too close to her boyfriend, a foreign news agency reported.
The woman was among 13 people – seven men and six women aged between 21 and 30 – who were caned at a mosque in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, as a baying crowd cheered the spectacle.
A man was caned for a less serious offence described as spending time with a member of the opposite sex in a hidden location in a fashion that could lead to adultery.
He added that he hoped the canings would serve as a deterrent: “We hope there are no more people in Banda Aceh who break the law in future.”
More and more people are being caned in Aceh. The number of women being flogged has particularly increased in recent times.
The province, on Sumatra island, began implementing sharia law after being granted special autonomy in 2001, an attempt by the government in Jakarta to quell a long-running separatist insurgency.
Islamic laws have been strengthened since Aceh struck a peace deal with Jakarta in 2005.
More than 90% of Indonesians describe themselves as Muslim, but the vast majority practise a moderate form of the faith.
Courtesy: Guardian