Indonesia sex tape sparks call to control internet
June 16, 2010 - 9:11AM
The release of video clips appearing to show top starlets having sex has sparked renewed calls for tighter internet controls in majority-Muslim Indonesia and more use of a controversial anti-pornography law.
The anti-porn law, passed in 2008, was seen by many as a sign of the growing influence of conservative Islam in policy-making in traditionally moderate Indonesia, a worry for some investors hoping for pro-market reforms.
Police are now considering invoking it in an investigation into the release on the grainy clips that appear to show pop singer Nazril "Ariel" Irham having sex, in one clip with television star girlfriend Luna Maya, while in another with actress Cut Tari.
The stars have denied it is them. Local media reported Irham as saying his laptop was stolen last year and police have called the stars for questioning.
Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring has expressed disgust at the clips, which have dominated Indonesian news since being leaked earlier this month.
"Why would anyone tape such a private thing?" Sembiring was quoted as saying by local newspaper the Jakarta Post, which also reported him saying new rules were needed to ban "negative" Internet content.
Sembiring's Islam-based party PKS, seen as one of the most conservative parties in parliament, is a key member of President Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono's ruling coalition and pushed earlier this year for more Internet censorship controls. The plan was dropped after public outcry.
The party's president, Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq, told Reuters the clips showed inappropriate material was too easily accessible.
"To protect a community, there must be control, we cannot have total freedom," said the Saudi Arabia-educated politician.
"To create comfort and overcome negative effects on communities who are not ready and not supposed to consume certain material, then controls are a very good idea."
When asked if he would support limiting access to sites like YouTube or Facebook, Ishaaq said he would "if it was in the national interest". He expected the anti-porn law, used to charge nightclub dancers this year, to be used more often in future.
If letters to the editor are any judge, reactions from ordinary Indonesians to the country's first celebrity sex tape scandal have varied from voyeuristic interest to irritation.
"I think corruption is worse for society than a few sex videos," one scribe, "Peter", wrote to the Jakarta Post.
In a joint interview with TVOne, Ariel and Maya said they were victims of defamation and urged fans not to jump to conclusions.
But they did not clearly deny it was them in the video.
"The thing is, this is not over yet. There is still an ongoing investigation process. It is not supposed to be exaggerated before there is confirmation," Ariel responded when asked if it was him in the clip.
An exhausted-looking Maya, 26, accused the media of exaggerating the story.
"What's clear is that we're not how people accuse us of being," she said when asked whether she stood by comments to police that the video was fake.
"It's shocked us. It never crossed my mind that this kind of thing will happen to us ... This is defamation."
Police have questioned the three celebrities, who could each face 12 years in jail for producing or distributing pornography under a tough anti-porn law adopted in the mainly Muslim country in 2008.
In East Java on Monday police raided high schools and checked students' mobile phones to make sure they had not downloaded the videos.
"The operation has been conducted to keep the students away from the porn video as it would have a bad impact on them. Students are not supposed to watch that kind of video," local police spokeswoman Sri Sukorini told AFP.
It is not clear how the explicit videos were obtained or who uploaded them to the internet, where they remain widely available.
The stars' corporate sponsors including Unilever and Sharp have dropped them from product promotions, while Maya no longer hosts a popular music television show.
Critics said police should focus on serious crime such as corruption, and questioned why they were not cracking down on distributors of pirated, hardcore pornographic DVDs which are available across the country.
"These raids (on schools) are silly. The police are over-reacting... because even under the anti-porn bill ownership of a sex video is not forbidden," University of Indonesia communications analyst Ade Armando said.
Reuters/AFP
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