Banda Aceh, Indonesia — Two Christian men were publicly flogged Monday in Indonesia’s ultra-conservative Aceh province for drinking alcohol and gambling, in a rare instance of non-Muslims facing a punishment frequently condemned by rights groups.
The caning comes less than two weeks after a male couple was flogged nearly 80 times each for having gay sex, which is outlawed under local Islamic law.
On Monday, the two accused received 40 lashes each from a masked sharia officer who beat their backs with a stick.
One of them, identified only as JF, said he chose flogging to avoid a criminal prosecution that could have seen him jailed for up to six months.
“The Sharia police…
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