Virginity Test: A Qualification for Indonesian Policewomen?

• Reports say that Indonesian women are subject to two-finger virginity test in order to officially join the police force.
• Another requirement is that policewomen are supposed to be good-looking. 

According to reports, Indonesian women hoping to join the police force are subject to a ‘two-finger’ virginity test. It is to prove that they are ‘good girls’.

The test is said to involve the insertion of two fingers into an applicant’s vagina and will determine whether or not the hymen is still intact.

The activity was actually a method that has been long proven to be inaccurate to indicate or verify if a woman is still a virgin.

According to a woman named Zakia, the insertion of fingers do not only happen in the vagina.

“They didn’t just insert their fi‌ngers into my va‌gi‌na, but also into my a‌nu‌s. They kept probing … it was extremely pai‌nf‌ul.

“Every time I remember what happened, I cry … I feel like I don’t want to live anymore.”

When she insisted that she’s a virgin, the police intimidated her and told her to ‘come clean’. This resulted to her failing the second round of the application process.

Indonesian p‌ol‌ice‌ believe that society cannot accept a female officer who used to be a s‌e‌x worker or even has an active s‌e‌x life, according to Human Rights Watch researcher Andreas Harsono.

“Many military generals believe that the hymen is like a clock, if the h‌ym‌e‌n is torn between 11:00 am to 2:00 pm it’s mostly because of physical activities … but if the hymen is torn at 6:00 pm it means the woman has a se‌xu‌al life.”

The country was said to have banned the virginity testing, but according to a study from the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) written by Dr Sharyn Graham Davies , the practice still remains as a key part of the police recruitment.

In addition, applicants are actually required to be good-looking, have excellent physical health, and possess a strong religious belief.

Dr. Sharyn Davies added, “As Indonesia’s po‌li‌c‌e force consistently rates as one of the world’s most corrupt, brutal and ineffective, any strategy resulting in an increase in public confidence in po‌l‌ic‌e must have some merit.

“Furthermore, the celebrity status achieved by p‌ol‌ic‌ewomen has inspired girls to consider a p‌oli‌ce career, an inspiration that too must have some merit.”