Jakarta – Outraged by revelations of the alleged abuse of dozens of children by a single man, an official from Indonesia's highest Islamic authority has said the suspected pedophile Andri Sobari, or Emon, should be stoned to death.

"According to the Islamic Shariah, the deserved punishment for Emon is stoning," M. Qusoi, the secretary of the Sukabumi branch of the Indonesia Ulema Council (MUI), was quoted as saying by the state-run Antara news agency on Wednesday.

Qusoi said that all religions would agree that pedophiles deserve punishment to the fullest extent possible. The suspect has allegedly molested dozens of boys in Sukabumi, West Java. He is said to have paid his victims Rp 50,000 ($4.35).

The MUI official added that the current law, which stipulates a jail sentence of between three and fifteen years for cases like that of Emon, should be amended because only the prospect of severe punishment could prevent future cases.

"We're concerned about the high number of people who take advantage of children's innocence to satisfy their desires. Beside destroying the child's future, these immoral acts can also lead to infection with sexually transmitted diseases."

The chairman of the National Commission on Child Protection (Komnas PA), Arist Merdeka Sirait, however, said that Indonesia should apply chemical castration to punish pedophiles and prevent repeat offenses.

"At the moment, the maximum fifteen years' punishment is too light, some of the pedophiles were even freed of charges," Arist said on Tuesday as quoted by okezone.com. According to the Komnas PA chairman, the minimum sentence for pedophiles should be a 20-year jail term.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/mui-official-wants-sex-abuse-suspect-emon-stoned-death/