Indonesia's Aceh - modernization or return to 7th century Islamic sharia...

Indonesia ..........the country where Obama was raised and where he spent his childhood. Hat tip Caroline G

Since the tsunami in December 2004, in Aceh in northern Sumatra, the Islamic police have come out in force. Following the tragedy that hit the region, hundreds of Islamic police were deployed to track down "un-Islamic behaviour". Canings, fines and even stoning to death are the punishments that now await those who break the Koran's rules... http://www.france24.com/en/20100820-r...

The Indonesian province of Aceh was one of the hardest-hit areas when the Asian tsunami struck in December 2004. Since then, international donors have provided about 7 billion dollars in aid to the region. Now most of Aceh is back on its feet, and observers are highlighting its reconstruction as a rare success story. Al Jazeera's Step Vaessen reports from Aceh.....

Future of Sharia law uncertain in Aceh http://www.cathnewsasia.com/2010/06/2...

Anti-terror raid Police arrest two more suspects in Aceh - Aceh Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader Yusuf Al Qardawi affirmed that Muslim had never been involved in the terrorist group, but did not deny that Muktar had links to the Aceh terrorist group after Muktar confessed the weapons found in his house were entrusted to him by Maulana, a suspect who escaped during a raid in Lamkabeu, Aceh Besar.... http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/20...

Indonesia's Religious Police on Hemline Frontline - BANDA ACEH, KOMPAS.com - She wears a helmet and drives her scooter slowly through the capital of Indonesia's Aceh province, but Yuli is still stopped by the sharia police. Her crime: wearing tight jeans and a blouse deemed "un-Islamic". The 20-year-old lowers her eyes and doesn't argue with the khaki-clad male officers who summon her to the side of the road.

"I promise to buy a more Muslim outfit," she says, showing enough contrition for the police to wave her on her way. In one hour, 18 women are pulled over because the guardians of morality decide their slacks are too tight or their shirts reveal too much of their feminine curves.

Only three men receive the same treatment, for wearing shorts. "We have to respect sharia (Islamic) law, which has been adopted by the provincial government and which stipulates that women can only show their faces and their hands," sharia police commander Hali Marzuki told AFP.....

But this game of cat-and-mouse could take an ugly turn if a new regulations allowing the stoning to death of adulterers and the flogging of homosexuals is signed into law by the provincial government. The law was enacted by the outgoing Aceh Legislative Council on September 14, but it has been under review by the newly elected assembly and has not been signed into effect by Governor Irwandi Yusuf. Lawmakers in Jakarta have expressed their opposition to such draconian punishments, which could be declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court and re-open old wounds about Aceh's hard-won autonomy.

"We have to be very careful in the face of such radical pressures," said Khairani Arifin, an activist for Acehnese women's rights. "Aceh could look like Pakistan one day," she warned. http://cempaka-tourist.blogspot.com/2...

http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2...

Islamic Defenders' Front: Who Are These Guys? http://jakartica.com/2010/islamic-def...

Aceh drops a sharia gauntlet http://article.wn.com/view/2009/09/23... (VIDEO link)

Aceh moves to tighten sharia law http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/conn...

Rights Groups Condemn Aceh Stoning Law http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/r...

Aceh's Sharia Law Still Controversial in Indonesia http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/...

In Aceh Indonesia, Islamic police take to the streets http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-P...

It is thought to have been in Aceh where Islam was first established in Southeast Asia. In the early seventeenth century the Sultanate of Aceh was the most wealthy, powerful and cultivated state in the Malacca Straits region. Aceh has a history of political independence and fierce resistance to control by outsiders, including the former Dutch colonists and the Indonesian government..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aceh

Posted by Pamela Geller