Those in power in Indonesia have done little to alleviate the recent moral panic surrounding LGBT rights that has sprung up in the country, with some seemingly compete with each other to see who can come up with the most scaremongering statement to make about the marginalized group.
But it would be unfair to say that all Indonesian politicians are actively trying to stoke the flames of anti-LGBT hatred. Vice President Jusuf Kalla (JK), for example, seems to be pushing for society to show a certain level of tolerance for the marginalized group.
Yesterday, JK reminded everyone on both sides of the LGBT debate that Indonesia is still a tolerant country when it comes to sexual orientation, at least compared to our neighbors Malaysia, where homosexual acts are illegal.
“If you remember, in Indonesia, there used to be an [LGBT] minister, and he was still minister even when the public knew about him,” JK said, as quoted by Vivanews.
JK didn’t mention who the minister was, but to our knowledge the only Indonesian minister whose alleged homosexuality was something of an open secret was the late former Tourism Minister Joop Ave.
JK added that LGBT individuals in Indonesia still have the same access to education and rights in the workplace, although he stressed the need for them to respect moral and religious values prevalent in the country.
“As long as LGBT is a personal issue, then there’s no problem,” he said.
JK’s latest comments are at least a refreshing change of tone from the majority of politicians who have been only been adding to the anti-LGBT rhetoric in Indonesia.
But until politicians dare to actually speak up in favor of LGBT rights, the discrimination is, at this point in time, always going to outweigh the support, meaning that we’re still a long way from truly giving marginalized people social equality.
