The wearing of trousers, jeans, or any tight clothing becomes illegal for women in West Aceh.
West Aceh (Aceh Barat) regency in the province of Aceh in trailblazing fashion has become the first administrative area to ban Muslim women from wearing any type of tight clothing, specifically jeans/pants/trousers.
Criminal
While in other parts of Aceh, where Islamic sharia law is fitfully and gradually being introduced, women are only required to at least cover their head hair and not to flaunt their womanly shapes, West Aceh has seized the day in specifically banning jeans.
Caught
Roadblocks and patrols will be carried out, with the local government preparing 20,000 long flowing skirts to be distributed to women caught in violation of the law. Offenders will be required to change into the skirts on the spot, with their jeans being confiscated.
Offenders will also have their names taken down, and on their third offence will be taken into detention.
Under the new law, coming into force on 26th May 2010, shops and traders will also be forbidden from selling women’s jeans and trousers.
Regent Ramli Mansyur admits the regulation is controversial, but that it is a necessary part of the application of Islamic law.
As a leader I have to implement this law because in the hereafter I will be held responsible for my actions on Earth, and I will be held responsible by society.
He says, in a democratic spirit, that all elements of society support the new law, in majority terms. okezone
First I want to say I like Nay and Mono’s comments. Mono fooled me though, I was reading his comment thinking he was a crazy smart guy only to find out it was a Mark Twain quote, very good though, thanks.
I think it is ridiculous to control what people wear. I’m glad to see the country spending all this money to enforce a stupid law, instead of investing in the infrastructure of the country, or the economy. I think an investment in improving its citizens lives would yield a better return on investment, then buying a bunch of dresses to hand out at road blocks.
I have to say I was generally positive about the future direction of Indonesia until I chanced upon the often stimulating debates here on IM. A lot of pessimism here people, do you all really feel that Indonesia is as chronically inept as you, WNI included, seem to imply.
Anyway on the subject of Islamic intolerance Densus88 which must represent the nationalistic majority within the Establishment as had a string of successes and it’s interesting that the elimination of so many of the bearded pious has failed to arouse FPI and similar cohorts.
Now there must be links between FPI and Laskar Jihad and its spin offs. Going back to the Monas attack on the Ammadia sect, I was very surprised that a Bekasi acquaintance who doesn’t fast, none of whose family wear the hajib or ever attend mosque and I considered 100% secular defended the zealous bearded, without any prompt by me. I then asked were their connections between FPI and LaskarJ and he, becoming embarrassed, said yes.
Now D88, Indonesia Security Intelligence must, if they’re anyway professional, have heavily influenced such a public bunch of agitators. Maybe the rationale is allow them a degree of freedom so that the dangerously inclined don’t escape the surveillance web. And it seems this is a policy that extends editorially to the media. They exist, put them on the spotlight and let the mass be without any misconceptions to just what these barren desert influenced souls have in store for lush beautiful Indonesia. And well my perception was that TV with its, necessary for Indonesia, diet of sexy soaps, pop jamborees and gorgeous non-hijabed cewe was winning the battle for a pluralistic, tolerant Indonesia.
Aceh is unfortunately an exception, and for a variety of socio-historical reasons, previous excesses of Suharto, its permitted a certain leeway, but elsewhewre SBY and the nationalists must re-exert the tolerance enshrined in Pancasila. I know a nationalistic Batak gal caught up in that Batak church marginalization in Bekasi and a Catholic family also in Bekasi whose congregation have to rent shopspace for mass. Meanwhile in 90% Christian parts of Minhassa I see there is no objection to new majid. That tolerance would up to now have also extended to Christian dominated parts of North Sumatra and Bataks there don’t distinguish with their saudara in Java. A potential flashpoint?
Now I mainly follow political/economic debate back in the West, and there the sentiment regarding the future has turned decidedly negative, with some leading think-tanks even predicting the return of wholesale protectionism, which inevitably escalates the risk of inter-state disputes/war. Kaletsky of the London times hinted at this fear after golf-time with the ‘Captains of the Universe’ in Westchester County NY before Murdoch slapped an injunction on such negativity. Well I’m somewhat positive about Indonesia but if the West implodes, globalization halters and Indonesia stumbles, the Bearded Zealous in FPI/PKS will be emboldened to force their agenda onto a national level, which will be resisted by many in Maluku/Batak/Flores. And there will be many able wordsmiths/propagandists from the Christian Right in the West to assist their grievances a la Darfur/Southern Sudan.
Maybe I’ll become a pessimist too and predict China which has already bought up Papua New Guinea and the mighty USA fighting over the resources of Kalimantan and Eastern Indonesia and a newly recognized govt The Islamic Republic of Java with its capital in the recently renamed Jihadkarta.
Ross surely its time for individuals to be open about their sexuality. My uneasiness is with the closet crew, and I believe their scheming /insecurity is the primary reason for much unhappiness/angst within families, children. Had to laugh when the Indonesia police, gleefully, revealed that Nordin Tops rectum area gave all the signs of many years of extensive pummeling. Maybe Intolerance sent him wrong, and with more enlightenment he could have been a happy banchi singing on the back of the bus
And for those too busy to read lenghty treatise above – I think I’m saying that the Govt/nationalists are perhaps successfully in a more idiosyncratic approach controlling/curtailing radical Islam. But even though its sometimes unpalatable to westerners can we say that our states’ policies have worked any better.
it is a good thing for a muslim woman to wear clothes that are according to islam and clothes that protect them from evil. the purpose of having a dress code like islamic dress code is to eleminate evil thoughts and feelings. it helps the men in society hence gives the weman a value. the value that wemans are humans and that they are not like non-living to misuse from thier beauty. but the other thing really important is that in islam everyone is given the freedom. they are free to be muslim, they are free to believe in islam, or any other religion, they are free to choose anything they want!
bcz islam gives freedom such importance this law is wrong. islam doesnt force people to do something it just gives them the right option and it is absolutely up to the individual to choose it or not to choose it.
this law is wrong since it is against islam, in islam everyone is free. real muslims wear islamic clothings bcz they love it bcz they choose to wear it!
but those who dont wear it is thier choice and in islam this critical! for them to be real muslim they have to choose everything themselves,if they are forced then that is against islam. to be forced to practice islam is against islam!!
People should be free to chose what they want to wear.
Christian and Jewish people can wear whatever they want.
But the cruel intolerant people of Islam steal other people’s freedom of chose by not allowing people to live the way they want to.
Islam is an Evil cult of hate and tyranny.’
Copyright Indonesia Matters 2006-2025
Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact
i’d say robber baron republic is a pretty accurate description