Indonesia's President Finally Speaks Out Against Country's Rampant Anti-LGBT Discrimination
As anti-LGBT violence continues to escalate in Indonesia, the nation's president has finally stepped forward to demand protections for the country's LGBT community.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo made his first comments on the pervasive discrimination to the BBC.
“The police must act [to protect them],” Jokowi declared. “There should be no discrimination against anyone."
Jokowi's short statement comes months after a group of influential Indonesian politicians first began to spread anti-LGBT rhetoric throughout the country. At the time, the Human Rights Watch described the movement as a "sustained assault" against the LGBT community.
By March, the bombast turned to violence when government ministers and conservative religious leaders labelled the LGBT rights movement a "type of modern warfare." These officials encouraged citizens to attack and slander their LGBT neighbors.
“The impact of anti-LGBT rhetoric from government officials is enormous for us as individuals. For those of us who have worked so hard and risked so much to come out, it is a major step backward,” a lesbian activist in eastern Indonesia told HRW.
In August, a spokesperson for President Jokowi said there was "no room" for LGBT equality in Indonesia.
He added, “Rights of citizens like going to school and getting an ID card are protected, but there is no room in Indonesia for the proliferation of the LGBT movement.”
Soon thereafter, police began to call for the banning of LGBT-related phone apps and TV content that promoted LGBT behavior as "normal."
“Jokowi’s long-overdue statement in support of LGBT nondiscrimination is a breath of fresh air as Indonesian officials and politicians continue their abusive and ill-informed homophobic onslaught,” Kyle Knight, LGBT researcher at Human Rights Watch, told Time.
“The thick cloak of social sanction created by the anti-LGBT cacophony of dozens of public figures won’t dissolve simply because the president finally expressed his support for basic rights,” Knight continued. "But it does signal that the Jokowi administration is keen on cultivating an Indonesia that is inclusive and safe for everyone."
Unfortunately, Jokowi later rectified his statement to the BBC, clarifying that “in terms of our beliefs, [the LGBT lifestyle] isn’t allowed, Islam does not allow it.”
h/t: Time