Ridwan Max Sijabat and Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – A sharia bill that would see convicted thieves have their hands amputated has sparked strong opposition among Acehenese, who believe the punishment should be imposed on those guilty of corruption.

Irwandi Yusuf, who is currently leading vote counting in the Aceh gubernatorial election, said he would never approve the bill, which was announced by local authorities last week.

"I will never agree to such a stiff bill. Common people steal because they're hungry and they usually commit such crimes because their situation forces them to do so. It is not fair to impose such a harsh sanction on the common people," he told The Jakarta Post here Friday.

Irwandi, a former rebel leader who studied postgraduate veterinary science in Oregon in the US, said it would be more fair to impose amputation on people who stole public funds.

"If the harsh bill is imposed on corrupters it will effectively help eliminate or minimize the corruption that has contributed to the poverty of a majority of the Acehnese people," he said.

He said his government would evaluate the implementation of sharia law in Aceh, adding he felt it had gone beyond pure Islamic teachings.

"Sharia law was created not to get humans in trouble but to form an Islamic religious community. How can we prohibit people from stealing what they need to survive after their rights have long since been stolen. The bill will be effective only after the people's social welfare has improved," he said.

Banda Aceh residents questioned the political motives behind the bill, saying the province was in need of qanun, or official code, on corruption.

Becak driver Ali, 29, said he thought the bill was unfair and called on the provincial legislature and government to drop it. "The bill will bring suffering to the poor because only the poor usually commit such violations," he said.

Feminist Naimah Hasan said the bill was regrettable and urged the government to let civil society discuss it before it was submitted to the provincial legislature for deliberation.

She questioned the provincial sharia office's political moves behind the sharia bylaws, saying that the government should not try to win the public's support through such bills.

"We have already had a qanun on stoning for women in adultery cases and on caning for gamblers and liquor distributors and consumers and we'll have another harsh qanun on hand amputation for thieves. All the qanuns target vulnerable groups and the poor. But no measures are being taken against corrupters and those who make a lot of money through gambling," she said.

Other members of the public are not aware of the bill. Mufi, a student at Syiah Kuala University, and Zubaidah, a market trader, both said they were shocked to hear of the plan.

Bill on thieves

• Chapter 4: Anyone stealing others' belongings (that are) equal to 94 grams of gold with the intention of possession faces the threat of hand-amputation (jarimah uhud).
• Chapter 5: Anyone stealing others' belongings equal to 94 grams of gold or more faces the threat of a maximum 60 canings (uqubuat ta'zir) and a minimum 20 canings or a maximum fine of Rp 60 million and a minimum Rp 20 million or a maximum ten years' imprisonment and a minimum 39-month jail sentence.
• Chapter 7: Anyone stealing others' belongings equal to six but less than 46 grams of gold faces the threat of 15 canings at maximum and five caning in minimum, a maximum fine of Rp 15 million and a minimum Rp 5 million or a maximum 30 month-jail sentence and minimum ten-month jail sentence.
• Chapter 8: Anyone stealing others' belongings equal to less than six grams of gold faces a maximum five canings and minimum two canings, or a maximum fine of 5 million and Rp 2 million in minimum, or a maximum ten-month jail sentence and a minimum four-month jail sentence.