Indonesia: Jail sentence for woman who prayed and ate pork

In predominantly Muslim Indonesia, a woman was sentenced to prison because she first said an Islamic prayer in a Tiktok video and then ate pork, which is forbidden in Islam.

A court in Palembang imposed two years in prison and a high fine of the equivalent of more than 15,000 euros on 33-year-old Lina Mukherjee for “disseminating information to incite hatred.”

“Bismillah” and pork consumption are not compatible in Indonesia

The entrepreneur and lifestyle influencer, who has more than two million followers on TikTok, is actually called Lina Lutfiawati. However, due to her affinity for India and the typical Bollywood films there, she gave herself the Indian name Lina Mukherjee.

Mukherjee describes herself as a Muslim. In March of this year, she was traveling in Bali and posted a video in which she pronounced “Bismillah” – an Arabic phrase meaning “in the name of God.” After saying the prayer, she ate crispy pork in front of the camera. In no time, the clip spread millions of times online.

The highest Islamic body in Indonesia, the Indonesian Ulema Council, had classified the video as blasphemy. The specific accusation: spreading hateful information as an act of hostility towards ethnicity, religion and race.

The case caused angry reactions among Muslims in the Muslim-majority, multi-ethnic state of Indonesia, which has long been known for its religious tolerance. A number of conservative groups in the country criticized the move.

88 percent of Indonesia’s population is Muslim. With over 191 million Muslims, Indonesia is the country with the largest Muslim population in the world.

Sources: , AFP