الرئيسية
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — Police in Indonesia's most conservative
province raided a punk-rock concert and detained 65 fans, buzzing off
their spiky mohawks and stripping away body piercings because of the
perceived threat to Islamic values.
Dog-collar necklaces and
chains also were taken from the youths before they were thrown in pools
of water for "spiritual" cleansing, local police chief Iskandar Hasan
said Wednesday.
After replacing their "disgusting" clothes, he handed each a toothbrush and barked "use it."
The
crackdown marked the latest effort by authorities to promote strict
moral values in Aceh, the only province in this secular but
predominantly Muslim nation of 240 million to have imposed Islamic laws.
Here,
adultery is punishable by stoning to death. Homosexuals have been
thrown in jail or lashed in public with rattan canes. Women are forced
to wear headscarves and told, please, no tight pants.
It's not clear why police decided to hone in on punks.
Though
pierced and tattooed teens have complained for months about harassment,
Saturday's roundup at a concert attended by more than 100 people was by
far the biggest and most dramatic bust yet.
Baton-wielding police
scattered fans, many of whom had traveled from other parts of the
sprawling archipelagic nation to attend the show.
province raided a punk-rock concert and detained 65 fans, buzzing off
their spiky mohawks and stripping away body piercings because of the
perceived threat to Islamic values.
Dog-collar necklaces and
chains also were taken from the youths before they were thrown in pools
of water for "spiritual" cleansing, local police chief Iskandar Hasan
said Wednesday.
After replacing their "disgusting" clothes, he handed each a toothbrush and barked "use it."
The
crackdown marked the latest effort by authorities to promote strict
moral values in Aceh, the only province in this secular but
predominantly Muslim nation of 240 million to have imposed Islamic laws.
Here,
adultery is punishable by stoning to death. Homosexuals have been
thrown in jail or lashed in public with rattan canes. Women are forced
to wear headscarves and told, please, no tight pants.
It's not clear why police decided to hone in on punks.
Though
pierced and tattooed teens have complained for months about harassment,
Saturday's roundup at a concert attended by more than 100 people was by
far the biggest and most dramatic bust yet.
Baton-wielding police
scattered fans, many of whom had traveled from other parts of the
sprawling archipelagic nation to attend the show.