TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) Din Syamsudin said that homosexuality is forbidden in Islam.
However, he urged both the government and religious institutions to "reach out" to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community through dialog instead of taking extreme, oppressive measures.
Related the plan to formulate a law to ban LGBT activities, Din said that the move is not needed in the near future.
"I don’t reject the plan, but it takes time,” Di said in Jakarta on Friday (4/3).
According to him, preventive approach is the most appropriate way to deal with the issue.
He also urged the state and community organizations to find ways to address the issue.
"I think we can use dialog, persuasive ways, and educative ways to approach the LGBT community,” he said.
He also urged Moslems not to mock the LGBT community.
In the meantime, Deputy Chairman of the National Commission of Human Rights said that the most important thing is that the state has to protect the LGBT community from violence actions against them.
AHMAD FAIZ
