Aceh Publicly Canes Couple

A young couple in Indonesia — Aceh, Indonesia, was publicly caned 21 times each after an Islamic Sharia court convicted them of violating Islamic law by kissing during a ByteDance — TikTok Shop livestream. The couple, a 22-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman, were arrested in April after their February 27 livestream in a car went viral and was reported to local Sharia authorities. They had already spent four months in prison, which reduced their initial sentence of 25 lashes. Indonesia — Aceh is the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia that enforces a version of Islamic law, granted by Indonesia's secular central government in 2006 as part of a peace deal. In 2015, Indonesia — Aceh expanded the law to apply to non-Muslims. The law allows up to 100 lashes for morality offenses, including adultery and gay sex, and also punishes gambling, drinking, and certain dress codes. Four other individuals were also caned on the same day for online gambling and adultery. Amnesty International Indonesia, through its Executive Director Usman Hamid, condemned the public caning as a cruel, inhumane, and degrading human rights violation, despite Indonesia having ratified conventions against such punishments. The court also ordered the destruction of the cell phone and USB flash drive containing the ByteDance — TikTok Shop video.