Zuhdiar Laeis, Semarang – Research, Technology and Education Minister Muhammad Nasir has asserted that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) groups should not be allowed into university campuses.
“How can they be [allowed] on campus? There are values and standards of decency that must be upheld. Campuses are the guardians of morals”, he said after officiating the opening of the new PGRI University in Semarang, Central Java, on Saturday.
His statement was in response to the Support Group and Resource Center on Sexuality Studies (SGRC) at the University of Indonesia (UI) campus offering counseling to LGBT people.
Nasir said that upon receiving this information he immediately contacted the UI rector and was told that by the university that the SGRC had not obtained permission from the campus for the activity.
“Upon receiving the information I immediately contacted the UI rector. It turns out that the UI did not give them permission for these activities”, said the former University of Diponegoro rector.
According to Nasir, LGBT groups could potentially destroy the morals of the nation and campuses as guardians of morality, which should be able to safeguard the proper values of decency and lofty values of the Indonesian nation.
Not long ago, a brochure was circulated by several LGBT groups on the UI campus that triggered a heated debated because many believed that the campus was allowing the seeds of LGBT ideas to grow.
A strong reaction was also conveyed by House of Representatives member from the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS), Muhammad Nasir Djamil who said that LGBT groups represent a serious threat to the nation.
“LGBT groups cannot be allowed to develop or be given any space for their activities. Moreover LGBT communities appear to be penetrating campuses through study groups or scholarly discussions”, he said.
[Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the report was Kampus mestinya tidak dimasuki LGBT, kata Menristek.]
Source: http://www.antaranews.com/berita/541624/kampus-mestinya-tidak-dimasuki-lgbt-kata-menristek
