Jakarta,  August 11: Indonesian women. who want to join the Army, will no longer have to undergo the "viginity test". The Indonesian Army has ended the controversial practice.  On Tuesday, Indonesian Chief of Army Staff Andika Perkasa on Tuesday confirmed the development to the media. Earlier, the Indonesian military had said that the tests were important to determine the morality of recruits. US, Indonesia Initiate Their 'largest-ever' Military Drill.

"Whether the hymen was ruptured or partially ruptured was part of the examination ... now there's no more of that, "reported global news agency Reuters quoting Andika as saying. Doctors used to conduct "two-finger test" to check hymen of female recruits. The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) had called it abusive and cruel. In 2014, the group started an investigation into the matter and in 2017, it renewed its calls to end the test.

Last week, Andik had said that the selection procedure for men and women should be equal. Human rights activists welcomed the move. Head of the National Commission on Violence Against Women Andy Yentriyani said that there was never any need for such tests. Indian Navy Joins Rescue Operation for Missing Indonesian Submarine KRI Nanggala-402, Dispatches its Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel.

However, it is still not clear whether "the virginity tests" on woman candidates are being conducted or not in other service wings of the country. The Indonesian Navy reportedly conducted pregnancy tests on women applicants. Meanwhile, an air force spokesperson, Indan Gilang, confirmed that female reproduction tests were undertaken to check for cysts and other complications. However, he said that the "virginity tests" did not exist in the force.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 11, 2021 10:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).