Gay men caning in Indonesia 'barbaric': PM

Malcolm Turnbull says the "barbaric" caning of gay men in Indonesia's province of Aceh is not a reflection of the entire country.

Malcolm Turnbull says the caning of gay men in Aceh is not a reflection of Indonesia as a whole. (AAP)

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull believes the caning of two gay men in the Indonesian province of Aceh is barbaric, but says the incident is not a reflection of the nation as a whole.

"It is certainly a barbaric thing to do, to be caning people because of their sexual orientation," he told Neil Mitchell on 3AW radio on Friday.

However, he said Indonesia was a big and diverse country, and its president Joko Widodo was a standard-bearer for moderate Islam.

Indonesia was proof that democracy, Islam and moderation were compatible, Mr Turnbull said.

Aceh is the only province in Indonesia to practice Sharia law.

It was part of a peace deal in 2006 to end a long bloody civil war with separatists.