Two men in Indonesia's conservative Aceh province have been publicly caned 77 times each after neighbours reported them to Islamic religious police for having sex.
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Dozens of people witnessed the caning at Banda Aceh's Tamansari city park.
It is the third time that Aceh, the only province in Indonesia to practice Shariah law, has caned people for homosexuality since the Islamic law was implemented in 2015 as a concession made by the government to end a long-running separatist rebellion.
The men, aged 27 and 29, were whipped across the back by a team of five enforcers wearing robes and hoods.
The men were arrested in November after residents became suspicious and broke into their rented room where they were caught having sex, Heru Triwijanarko, Aceh's acting Sharia police chief, said.
A Shariah court last month sentenced each man to 80 strokes, but they were caned 77 times after a remission for time spent in prison.
Four other people received 17 strokes for extra-marital relations and 40 strokes for drinking alcohol.
The law allows up to 100 lashes for 'morality offences' including gay sex.
Caning is also punishment for adultery, gambling, drinking and for women who wear tight clothes and men who skip Friday prayers.
With the exception of Aceh, homosexuality is not illegal in Indonesia, but the country's low-profile LGBT community has been under siege in the past years.
Australian Associated Press
