Indonesian police arrest 75 people at ‘gay party’

Authorities in the Indonesian city of Bogor on June 22 arrested 75 people after they raided a “gay party.”

Amnesty International in a press release notes the party was taking place at a villa in the city’s Puncak neighborhood. A local police chief reportedly said officers raided the gathering “following reports from the public regarding ‘gay activities.'”

“The police claimed to have secured a number of pieces of evidence, among them sex toys, four condoms, and a sword used for a dance performance,” said Amnesty International.

Bogor is roughly 40 miles south of Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, on the country’s Java island.

Officers took the 74 men and one woman they arrested to police headquarters. Amnesty International says they “were subjected to further examination, including health checks, and HIV tests.”

“The Indonesian authorities must end these hate-based and humiliating raids,” said Amnesty International. “No one should be subjected to arrest, intimidation, or public shaming because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.”

“The police must immediately release all those arrested,” it added. “Indonesia’s government must also take urgent steps to ensure accountability for human rights violations committed by the police, and work toward creating an environment where LGBTI individuals and their allies can live free from fear and harassment.”

Amnesty International notes authorities in Jakarta on May 24 raided a “gay sex party” at a hotel and arrested nine people. Indonesian police on Feb. 1 detained 56 people in a different Jakarta hotel after they raided “a gay party.”

Jakarta authorities in 2017 arrested 51 people who were attending a “gay party” at a sauna.

“These raids have increased in frequency in the first half of the year,” an Indonesian LGBTQ activist told the Washington Blade on Wednesday.

Amnesty International in its press release notes those arrested in the raids could face up to 15 years in prison for violating Indonesia’s Pornography Law.

“The Pornography Law defines pornography broadly, encompassing material that contravenes norms of community morality,” says Amnesty International. “Ambiguously worded laws on pornography are often exploited to deliberately target LGBTI people, denying them the basic right to privacy and the right to enter into consensual relationships.”