HKA video showing an unmarried couple in Indonesia's Aceh province receiving 21 lashes each for kissing during a TikTok livestream has gone viral. The punishment, carried out in Banda Aceh on July 2, is part of Aceh's enforcement of Sharia law under its Islamic Criminal Code, Qanun Jinayat. While international rights groups have condemned the public caning as inhumane, locals view it as tied to religious identity and regional autonomy. Aceh, which gained semi-autonomous status through a 2004 peace deal, has a history of observing Islamic law, though support for the punishment remains divided among residents.
Bias read (Center): The article presents both the international condemnation of the punishment as inhumane and the local perspective that frames it as a matter of religious identity and regional autonomy. It does not overtly favor one side over the other but highlights the complexity and differing viewpoints within Ace
