Indonesian priest Otto Gusti Madung opposes criminal penalties for LGBT advocacy
Catholic priest Otto Gusti Madung has opposed the Indonesian Ulema Council’s call for criminal penalties for activities supporting LGBT people. New Ways Ministry revisited his position on October 29, 2026, citing a UCA News report published on June 26.
Madung is a member of the Society of the Divine Word and rector of the Ledalero Institute for Philosophy and Creative Technology on the Indonesian island of Flores. He described such restrictions as a threat to freedom of expression, guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In his view, fear of punishment discourages people from expressing criticism and strengthens authoritarian practices.
The dispute followed a June 25 statement from the Muslim clerical council, known as MUI. In a publication on the council’s website, its head of fatwa affairs, Asrorun Niam Sholeh, reaffirmed plans to seek sanctions against people the council regards as LGBT campaigners. He justified the position as protecting public order, moral standards and the country’s future. The council also advocates “rehabilitation” for people whose sexuality it considers deviant.
UCA News also quotes Abu Rokhmad, director general of Islamic community guidance at Indonesia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs. He expressed concern about LGBT people’s growing public activity and supported efforts to enable Muslims to follow Islamic teachings.
The council draws on a 2014 fatwa that declared same-sex sexual relations religiously forbidden and urged the authorities to make them a criminal offense. A fatwa is an opinion on a matter of Islamic law. As MUI itself explains, such opinions do not automatically become state law and have no binding legal force in themselves.
A coalition of 37 civil society organizations opposed the initiative. According to UCA News, its members highlighted the vagueness of “LGBT campaigning” and the risk of prosecuting people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. They also fear restrictions on human rights advocacy and point to the state’s duty to protect citizens’ rights.
The legal situation in Indonesia varies by region. Human Dignity Trust notes that same-sex sexual relations are explicitly prohibited under local law in Aceh province. It also warns that provisions of the new national Criminal Code, in force since January 2, 2026, including restrictions on sex outside marriage, could be used to target LGBT people.
Uránia previously reported on Madung’s criticism of plans for anti-LGBT teaching in Indonesia, as well as the Ulema Council’s preparation of a bill called “Anti-LGSP”.
