Indonesian Poll Backs Sharia Law In Districts That Have Adopted It

In Indonesia, a poll conducted by the Centre for the Study of Religion and Culture in six districts that have implemented Sharia-inspired laws found that they were supported by 94.7% of respondents. AKI yesterday reported on the poll of 1000 Indonesians, including 200 non-Muslims. Interestingly, 46% of the non-Muslim respondents also supported the laws. However 44.5% of Muslims surveyed said that the Sharia laws did not improve the economy of the regions. In the district of Bireun, tourism has suffered after the local authorities enforced caning punishments for adultery and alcoholism. The survey also found that most Muslim respondents would like to ban non-Muslim places of worship being built in their neighborhoods.