Women banned from dining with men

BANDA ACEH: A district in Aceh province has banned men and women from dining together unless they are married or related, an official said yesterday, saying it would help women be “more well behaved”.

Aceh – the only region in Indonesia that imposes syariah law – has drawn fire in the past for putting moral restrictions on women.

Under the latest regulation, women in Bireuen district will not be able to share a table with men at restaurants and coffee shops unless they are accompanied by their husband or a close male relative.

Co-workers on their lunch break would also be forbidden from sharing a meal.

“The objective is to protect women’s dignity so they will feel more comfortable, more at ease, more well behaved and will not do anything that violates syariah,” head of the local syariah agency Jufliwan, who like many Indonesians has only one name, told AFP.

Another part of the directive –signed by the district head on Aug 5 – said women who were alone or not with family should not be served at restaurants and cafés after 9pm.

Authorities say it will be up to restaurateurs to enforce the regulation, although offenders will not be punished.

Three years ago, provincial capital Banda Aceh banned unaccompanied women from entertainment venues like cafes and sports halls after 11pm.

In 2013, Lhokseumawe city in Sumatra’s north ordered women to sit “side-saddle” on motorbikes with their legs dangling off to one side as straddling male drivers on motorbikes was “improper”. – AFP