Indonesian arrest threat for kiss

Unrelated couples who kiss for more than five minutes in public would be liable to arrest under new rules being considered by an Indonesian city.

The rules would also ban couples from sensual touching or opening each other's clothing, local media say.

They say the move, in Tangerang on the outskirts of Jakarta, is being seen as a crackdown on un-Islamic behaviour.

When asked if stopwatches would be used, a local official said: "Don't dramatise... we are not oppressors."

Tangerang last year also brought in tough new rules to crack down on prostitution, angering liberals.

Detention

Moves to devolve more power to regions have enabled some to introduce bylaws to regulate behaviour along the lines of sharia, or Islamic, law which is not observed at a national level.

I think there is no need for [the law] In Islam, such lip-to-lip kissing in public is not allowed Hajjah Utju, Tangerang resident

Local media noted Tangerang's new proposal would ban "constant lip-to-lip kissing for more than five minutes".

Ahmad Lutfi, head of the city's public order department, would not comment on how the rules would be implemented or whether the kiss would have to be continuous.

"Please do not dramatise this," he told the Koran Tempo newspaper.

"We will not arrest people at will as we are not oppressors."

Kissing in public in Indonesia is largely regarded as a social taboo and doubts have been cast on whether laws are needed.

One local resident, Hajjah Utju, told the Associated Press news agency: "I think there is no need for it. In Islam, such lip-to-lip kissing in public is not allowed, and most of us are Muslims here."

Legislation on issues such as pornography is currently being debated at the national level and includes a proposed ban on kissing in public.

Such a ban is opposed by many national lawmakers who are in a majority.

Last year, Tangerang introduced laws banning women from being alone after dark in an effort to tackle prostitution.

In February, police detained a woman restaurant worker who was waiting for her husband on a street, sparking complaints from humans rights groups and women activists.