Excerpts from: Escaping Indonesia
For most, Indonesia is an idyllic tourist destination with tropical rainforests, paradise-like beaches, and exotic species like the Komodo Dragon, Javan rhinoceros, and orangutans. But for LGBTQ Indonesians, like Rainer Oktovianus and his husband, Eka Nasution, Indonesia is a hotbed of hate and oppression.
Indonesia does not have specific laws against homosexuality. However, it is primarily an Islamic country with a population that is 80 percent Muslim. The laws conform to Islamic culture and morals, so local government will often punish individuals that deviate from these morals. Government committee members publicly share their Muslim beliefs, which condemn homosexuality. These discriminatory comments which are featured on the news keep the national hysteria going, like gas on a fire. A strong Islamic group, the Islamic Defender Front (FPI) targets LGBT by destroying nightclubs and bars, attacking transvestites, and assaulting LGBT members with bamboo clubs, stones, and machetes.
It was at the 2010 Q! Film Festival that Rainer, a committee member, met Eka, a festival volunteer, and they soon started dating. Rainer and Eka come from very different backgrounds. Rainer was adopted by a single mom who raised him in a strict Christian household. Eka had two Muslim parents and read the Quran every day.
In 2014, after dating four years, Rainer and Eka went on a two-week vacation to Ontario and decided to get married. They were legally wed in Ottawa. It was easy to get married in Canada; they didn't have to be a resident, but just needed a passport. It would take three months, however, to receive the marriage certificate by mail. It is common for international mail to be opened by government officials in Indonesia, so Rainer and Eka were very nervous about being discovered. The 12-week wait was like a "ticking time bomb," but luckily, they received the certificate unopened.