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Indonesia's Top Court Just Blocked A Gay Sex Ban, But Homophobia Is Running Rampant

"There is no room in Indonesia for the proliferation of the LGBT movement,” said President Joko Widodo.

On Thursday, Indonesia's Constitutional Court ruled against a proposed ban on gay sex. The 5-4 decision is being considered a victory for the country's LGBT community, but it is a small one.

The Family Love Alliance, an Islamic activist group, proposed the ban, which would have also barred sex outside of marriage. Member of the Alliance reportedly wept as the ruling was read.

In the majority opinion, the justices said it wasn't the court’s role to create laws or criminalize private behavior. In a dissent, though, four judges argued homosexuality and sex outside marriage should be outlawed on moral grounds.

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JAKARTA, INDONESIA - MARCH 08: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activists hold a rally to mark International Women's Day, on March 08, 2017 in Jakarta, Indonesia. PHOTOGRAPH BY Solo Imaji / Barcroft ImagesLondon-T:+44 207 033 1031 E:hello@barcroftmedia.com -New York-T:+1 212 796 2458 E:hello@barcroftusa.com -New Delhi-T:+91 11 4053 2429 E:hello@barcroftindia.com www.barcroftimages.com (Photo credit should read Solo Imaji / Barcroft Images / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

While only parliament can pass amendments, support from the court would influence members' decision. “We are working on the ground level and know exactly the magnitude of this problem on the ground,” Alliance member Euis Sunarti told reporters.

It's a rare win for LGBT Indonesians, though, who have seen an uptick in witch hunts, bigotry, and discrimination. Homosexuality is still legal in most of Indonesia, but in May two young men were caned for having gay sex in Aceh, a semiautonomous region governed by Shariah law. Earlier in the year, a West Java police chief announced plans for a task force with the sole purpose of identifying and persecuting gay people.

Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images

BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA - MAY 23: An Indonesian man gets caning in public from an executor known as 'algojo' for having gay sex, which is against Sharia law at Syuhada mosque on May 23, 2017 in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. The two young gay men, aged 20 and 23, were caned 85 times each in the Indonesian province of Aceh during a public ceremony after being caught having sex last week. It was the first time gay men have been caned under Sharia law as gay sex is not illegal in most of Indonesia except for Aceh, which is the only province which exercises Islamic law. The punishment came a day after the police arrested 141 men at a sauna in the capital Jakarta on Monday due to suspicion of having a gay sex party, the latest crackdown on homosexuality in the country. (Photo by Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images)

Even President Joko Widodo, who has spoken out against homophobic violence, insists "there is no room in Indonesia for the proliferation of the LGBT movement.”

In September, police evicted a dozen women from a home in Bogor on suspicion of lesbianism. (A local religious youth group called authorities, claiming women living together was “against the teachings of Islam.”)

And just this week, ten men were sentenced to two to three years in prison after an earlier raid of a gay sauna in Surabaya, Indonesia's second largest city.

Juni Kriswanto/AFP/Getty Images

This photo taken on April 30, 2017 shows Indonesian police parading a group of men arrested for allegedly holding a "gay party" in Surabaya, the second biggest city in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country.Officers busted 14 men holding the party in two hotel rooms in Surabaya, around midnight on April 29. / AFP PHOTO / JUNI KRISWANTO (Photo credit should read JUNI KRISWANTO/AFP/Getty Images)

More than 140 people were detained in the May raid—those charged include the club's managers, a trainer, security guard, strippers, and two patrons caught performing sex acts.

Indonesia has historically been considered a more moderate Muslim country, but extremists have been gaining a foothold: Male actors are already barred from doing drag on television but this year, representatives passed a law prohibiting any LGBT characters on TV. Lawmakers have also called for a ban on LGBT emojis and Grindr.

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