Bobby Nasution, the Mayor of Medan city in Indonesia, has proclaimed his area is anti-LGBT.
The mayor lamented that he saw too many same-sex couples while walking from his office to a New Year’s Eve event, and now he wants people to stop being gay saying it is not in line with local religious beliefs and cultural teachings.
“The city of Medan does not have LGBT, we are anti-LGBT,” Nasution reportedly said.
Local media have shared that mayor was not happy after seeing too many men walking in pairs and he says local religious leaders were backing his stance.
“It was also a message from religious leaders that we have to avoid things like that, we also have to suppress things, things that are outside of our culture,” he said.
The mayor also said single people should find someone of the opposite sex to marry as soon as possible, and married couples should ensure that they are having two children.
Nasution, who is the son-in-law of Indonesia President Joko Widodo, was elected to the position of Mayor of Medan city in December 2020. Medan is the capital and largest city in the province of North Sumatra. It is the fourth largest urban area in Indonesia and home to 2.4million people.
Homosexuality has bever been illegal in Indonesia, but a new criminal code scheduled to take effect from 2026 will make having sex outside of marriage illegal. Same-sex unions are not allowed in the country.
The mayor’s statement comes as Islamic religious leaders in Bogor, a city in the West Java, held a community event about rejecting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender behaviour. The event was titled “Uncovering the Dangers of LGBT for Family and Religious Resilience”.
At the conclusion of the event all attendees read a statement proclaiming the rejection of the existence of LGBT people in the city. They also called on their mayor to issue regional regulations to prevent the development of LGBT activities in the area.
OIP Staff
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