Indonesia: On 2nd thought, if unmarried tourists have sex here we won’t arrest them

We recently discussed the new penal code being established in Indonesia which will impose a version of Sharia law for everyone in the country. One aspect of the new laws has become known as the “Bali bonking ban” because it imposes jail sentences of up to a year for married people who commit adultery or unmarried people who cohabitate. That provision provoked an immediate outcry, largely because Bali and other resort areas of the island nation are popular tourist destinations for western visitors who don’t always embrace the same rigid personal restrictions that the country’s Muslim majority insist upon. Apparently realizing the amount of money they would potentially stand to lose, the Governor of Bali has now “clarified” the law and said that authorities will not be looking into the marital status of any tourists coming to the island. (BBC)Read More