Rik Glauert – A local government in Indonesia on Wednesday (17 October) sent a circular to the region's mosques asking them to preach on the dangers of the LGBTI community and HIV at prayers on Friday.

Muslim-majority Indonesia has witnessed a violent crackdown on the LGBTI community since 2016, even though homosexuality is not illegal.

The government of Cianjur regency in West Java sent the sermon request because a report by an Aids commission showed the LGBTI population was rising, according to CNN Indonesia.

The memo included sermons titled 'The Dangers of LGBT, Sodomy and Abuse in terms of Religious Life, the Nation and the State from the Perspective of Islamic Law'.

A Cianjur Regency Government spokesperson told CNN the Aids commission indicated there were as many as 3,452 gay men in the region.

'Of course the negative impact of LGBT is our concern and the people in our region do not want it to continue to grow and develop' the spokesperson reportedly said.

HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men in Indonesia is about 25 per cent, according to UNAIDS. But, experts warn, vilifying the LGBTI Indonesian blocks access to prevention and treatment services for the community, worsening the crisis.

The memo came on the same day that Indonesia's Minister of Religious Affairs, Lukman Hakim Saifuddin, posted a video to Twitter denouncing LGBTI people.

Ahead of the 2019 national elections, many politicians are keen to show they do not support the LGBTI community to secure votes among conservative Indonesians.

https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/regional-govt-in-indonesia-asks-mosques-to-warn-of-lgbti-dangers/