A 22-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman were publicly caned on Thursday in Banda Aceh’s Bustanussalatin City Park, each receiving 21 strokes of a rattan cane. The punishment, ordered by Aceh’s Sharia court, followed their conviction for kissing while unmarried during a TikTok livestream in February. At least 100 onlookers gathered as hooded officials administered the lashings on a stage. The couple had been arrested in April after the video went viral and was reported to local sharia authorities. Their sentence was reduced from 25 lashes to account for four months already spent in detention.

Aceh’s sharia police chief, Muhammad Rizal, told reporters that the pair “clearly violated the Islamic sharia” and noted it was the first time the province had punished someone for violating religious law through social media. The court also ordered the destruction of a mobile phone and USB drive containing the video. The province, which holds special autonomy to enforce a version of Islamic law, permits caning for a range of morality offences, including adultery, gambling, alcohol consumption, and same-sex relations. The law was expanded in 2015 to cover non-Muslims, who make up roughly 1 per cent of the population.

Amnesty International Indonesia condemned the caning as a human rights violation, describing it as cruel, inhumane and degrading. Its executive director, Usman Hamid, argued that while the behaviour might be considered inappropriate, imprisonment or caning was “excessive”. The organisation called on the government to end corporal punishment, stating it has no place in a just society. By contrast, some residents in Banda Aceh expressed support. Aini Nadhirah, a 22-year-old witness, said the punishment was “entirely justified” as a warning to others to be more careful on social media and to educate the public about unacceptable conduct.

Viewed from Jakarta, the central government has not intervened, having granted Aceh the right to implement religious law in 2006 as part of a peace deal that ended a decades-long separatist conflict. Analysts in Southeast Asia note that the case extends the reach of Aceh’s sharia enforcement into the digital sphere, potentially setting a precedent for prosecuting online expression. The caning of four other individuals on the same day for gambling and adultery underscores the routine application of corporal punishment in the province. No legal challenge or central government review has been announced, and the law remains in force.