anti-pornography law Indonesia

The hereditary sultan of the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta declared his opposition Thursday to a tough new anti-pornography law which has stirred fiery debate ahead of elections next year.

Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, a candidate for presidential elections due around July, said the bill threatened national unity based on respect for the cultural and religious diversity of the mainly Muslim archipelago of 234 million people.

He said the anti-porn law introduced recently with the backing of Muslim parties was "the most terrible thing in the process of building our nation".

The law criminalises all works and "bodily movements" including music and poetry which could be deemed obscene and capable of violating public morality, and offers heavy penalties.

Critics from the Christian and Hindu minorities as well as many moderate Muslims say it threatens regional traditions such as certain costumes and dances, and encourages vigilante attacks.

"The leader of our nation must be able to build tolerance between the citizens so they live side by side in peace. For me, this cannot be negotiated," the sultan told foreign journalists.

"If all Indonesian women wear Islamic veils no one will wear their traditional clothes, from Aceh province to Papua."

Hamengkubuwono is regarded as semi-divine by many Muslim Javanese whose Islamic faith is mixed with earlier Hindu and animist beliefs.

Info : http://news.id.msn.com