Police officials in Indonesia have come under fire for conducting virginity tests on female applicants, as the Human Rights Watch says the practice harms and humiliates women.

Female police applicants in Indonesia have to be single and be a virgin to pass the initial screening. Reports have emerged saying the practice has been discontinued but the virginity test is still being widely used in the region, according to the rights group.

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The human rights organization interviewed a couple of young women including those who underwent the test just this year who said the experience was both painful and traumatic. The women recalled that they were forced to strip naked in front of the female medics.

These ladies also said they think they should not take their clothes off in front of strangers. The test is unnecessary and needs to be stopped, they added.

According to the associate women's rights director at the rights group, the Indonesian National Police's use of the test is a discriminatory practice. Police authorities in Jakarta should immediately abolish the test and assure that police recruiting stations do not do it anymore, she continued.

The test, called as the "two-finger" test, is used to determine if the applicant is a virgin. The policewomen who have undergone the said test have brought up the issue with senior police officials but the practice is still not abolished.

In a statement, a spokesman for the Indonesia police said they need to conduct the test to ensure that the recruits do not have any kind of sexually transmitted diseases. All of the screening procedures are done professionally and do not to any harm the applicants, he explained.

Virginity tests are also being used in other countries such as Afghanistan, Egypt and India. 

Tagsvirginity test, Indonesian National Police, Indonesia, Human Rights Watch, female applicants