The largest religion is Muslim though. So, yeah iut could happen.

@snytiger6 Yes...of course the main religion in Indonesia is Islam...in fact it is the most populous Muslim country in the world. I think it’s unlikely that this law will pass principally because it would be completely unworkable in practice.

I don’t think it will happen either. Indonesia is very good at posturing but how the heck are they going to police this law anyhow. When I was still living there, there was a ban or at least discouragement of Western cultural items. Girls were not allowed to wear pants (copying Western style they say). I never owned a pair of pants in my first 12 years of life. No Western music allowed but we always bought bootlegged copies of North American/European albums anyway. When we moved to Canada these laws laxed a bit. Of course, having a religion is not an option; it’s a mandatory law. But really, nobody enforces these silly things.

If they realize this law affecting tourism they will get rid of it. I mean, what is Bali without tourism. BTW, I was born and lived on the mainland across the strait from the island of Bali. We used to go there all the time for vacation. It’s a beautiful place for sure. Too bad it belongs to one of the most restrictive regimes in the world.

@graceylou Yes...it’s very beautiful...Java too, I’ve been to both of them. You must have found it quite liberating when you moved to Canada.

@Marionville I didn’t know any different I guess. I was more surprised school was so lax here. I was used to being punished for very innocent things at school. And I didn’t have pants for the colder weather. My mom wouldn’t buy me pants so I had to wear her old and really outdated pants to school. So embarrassing!!! Lol.

While prostitution is legal in Indonesia (pimping is not), soliciting sex with a minor is highly illegal and will get you put in a third world prison for a very long time. In most parts of SE Asia, what an adult chooses to do with their own body is their own business. Children are protected and soliciting of one individual to another by a third party is not allowed.

That's not to say there aren't illegal, black market prostitution rings doing business deep in the jungles, which are difficult to police. But if you're a pervert looking to sexuallly abuse children or shell out money to a pimp for a sex slave, you won't find what you are looking for in the go-go bars in the bigger cities anywhere in SE Asia.

That was Singapore

@Remi You are completely correct. My bad. Thank you for the correction.

Indonesia has banned chewing gum. Among other things.
Hence, my confusion.

Again, thank you for the correction.

@KKGator Indonesia is best known as supposedly the last country to still practice cannibalism on some of its islands. It supposedly stopped by the 1960's ... but there are rumors that it still sometimes happens.

@snytiger6 Awesome. LOL
Another reason for me not to go.

@powder The adaptation of Islam to local traditions is seen as a positive thing by Muslims in Southeast Asia. Islam is part of everyday life in Southeast Asia and is not separated from "non-religious realms". Southeast Asia contains the highest number of Muslims in the world, easily surpassing the Middle East and North Africa.

That's from a quick search on islam in southeast Asia.

Islam is spreading. Even there.

Th elargest religion is Muslim, so a ban on alcohol would nto surprise me.

@snytiger6 Yes, but in Bali they are HIndus, not the same kind of Hindus as in India though.

@Jolanta When I think of Hindus... I just remember that scene in the movie Gandhi where a Hindu extremist gunned him down.

@snytiger6 Yes, they can be very aggressive. There are horrible things happening in India at the moment, however as far as Bali. The kind of Hinduism in Bali is not the same as in India. I have been to Bali several times and find the people there lovely, pity about all the tourists though. They drink and misbehave with no thought to the local customs. It is a lovely place.