Nurfika Osman – For 40-year-old Syarifuddin, serving in the Shariah Police in staunchly Muslim Aceh was his life's calling.

"I feel like Wilayatul Hisbah is like my second wife. I always love to go to the street with my officers to uphold the Shariah law in every nook and cranny of this province," Syarifuddin said, referring to the religious police by its official name.

He said that his telephone was on 24 hours a day, ever-ready to accept reports about violations of qanun, or religous laws, effective in Aceh.

Now a deputy commander for the Wilayatul Hisbah at the provincial level, he first joined the Shariah Police as a contract worker in 2003. He said he was paid less than Rp 1 million ($109) per month then, but did not reveal how much he was earning now.

"Look at me. I am skinny, as I love to go to the streets and monitor the people. I want them to uphold the Shariah law based on the Koran," he said.

Syarifuddin said many people, especially those who lived outside Aceh, had the misconception that the Shariah Police were eager to inflict harsh punishments on violators of religious law in the province.

"If you are guilty of violating one of qanuns, you can run away and we will not chase and lash you," he said. "A lashing is the last punishment we are going to use. We are going to first warn the people and tell them that they cannot repeat their violations in the future."

He said that a man who was caught not performing Friday prayer would be warned by an officer on the spot. "He would be punished by three lashes with a whip if he skipped prayer three times in a row," Syarifuddin said.

In the same qanun that governs the punishment for those failing to join the Friday prayers, Muslim women found with their bodies not covered in the prescribed manner on three different occasions may receive one lash.

"Basically, we want people to feel ashamed of what they are doing so that they will be good Muslims," Syarifuddin said.

Another qanun provided harsher punishment for the consumption of alcoholic beverages, including a local beer called Hijok Masam,

"The people who drink it will be lashed 40 times and the seller will be fined Rp 5 million [$545] or face six months in jail," Syarifuddin said, adding that the punishment was only meted after the second offense.

A qanun on gambling orders seven lashes for violators, but Syarifuddin said, "if they don't use money in playing cards, they will not be considered in violation."

Another qanun issued in 2003 prohibits physical closeness between members of different sexes who are not related or married. Violators face eight lashes. "Most of the perpetrators are university students," Syarifuddin said.

He said that the aim of the caning or lashing was not to hurt those being punished. "It does not hurt. People who have been lashed will meet the head of the district or mayor where they come from, and will be given a prayer mat and a Koran."

Syarifuddin said that this was what the Acehnese wanted. "They even keep pushing the executives to pass the compilation of Qanun Jinayat [criminal code] in which everything is exactly what the Koran says, such as stoning people to death," he said. "However, I think the Acehnese are not ready for this."

He said that the qanun was applicable to all Muslims, be they residents or visitors.

Hausmani, 50, an Aceh resident, told the Jakarta Globe that she did not have any problem with the religious law. "We Acehnese try to implement what the Koran says," she said. Helmi, 24, said, "we want Islam and its values to be implemented here."

Those wanting to criticize should choose their words carefully. Syarifuddin said that Acehnese would be furious if they were called crazy Muslims. "When anyone calls us crazy, we are going to be very mad; it is a strong insult," he said.