Indonesian military insists on virginity tests to determine ‘naughty’ female recruits
(and the war on women continues apace)
Indonesian military insists on virginity tests to determine ‘naughty’ female recruits
Human Rights Watch calls for the end to ‘two-finger test’ by medics, saying it is harmful and humiliating
Indonesian soldiers march during a parade. The military is insisting all female recruits have virginity tests. Photograph: Dita Alangkara/AP
Indonesia has been urged to drop a “discriminatory and invasive” virginity tests for female military recruits, but the military insisted the practice was necessary to check whether the women are “naughty”. Human Rights Watch on Thursday said the examinations – commonly carried out through a “two-finger test” by medics to see whether the hymen is intact – are a form of gender-based violence and unscientific.
The Indonesian military defended the practice, saying it was part of health check requirements for potential new recruits and it will continue the test. “We need to examine the mentality of these applicants. If they are no longer virgins, if they are naughty, it means their mentality is not good,” Indonesian military spokesman Fuad Basya told the Guardian.
He said the test has been carried out “for a long time” and that it can determine whether the women have “accidentally” lost their virginity or were sexually active. He said those who failed the test are not eligible to join the military. “We will continue to carry out the test because to be a military person, the most important thing is your mentality. Physical and intellectual requirements are secondary,” Basya said.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged Indonesian President Joko Widodo to immediately abolish the requirement.
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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/14/indonesian-military-insists-on-virginity-tests-to-determine-naughty-female-recruits
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