Jakarta – Legislators of the House of Representatives are moving to appease opponents of the pornography bill. They plan to approach Bali, Papua and Batam, regions where the strongest opposition to the bill has come from.
Yoyoh Yusroh, deputy chairman of a special House committee in charge of deliberating the bill, said the visits to the regions this week would be part of the efforts to obtain and share first-hand information.
"We'd like to explain the bill. They will get the information directly from us rather than from other parties or from the media," Yoyoh, a legislator from the Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) told Antara on Sunday.
Among contentious issues is the definition of pornography in the bill, which critics say is too loose prompting strong protests in regions such as Bali and Papua where nudity in certain contexts is part of the culture. Nudity or partial nudity in paintings, statues and dance, are part of the culture in Bali and Papua.
Being the country's gateway to Singapore, the industrial island of Batam is likely to reject the bill for fear that it would adversely effect its tourism industry.
The arts, however, are among the exceptions in the bill's numerous prohibitions on displays of sensuality, eroticism and sexuality, if they are performed or on display in a "government-sanctioned arts center." Yoyoh said that more input was expected after people were more familiar with the bill so that the committee can finalize it.
"The finalization process is set to begin on March 8," he said. Until then, he added, people still have the opportunity to give their views.
"We will accommodate each input. So far, aside from formal hearings, we have also received written suggestions from people from various professional backgrounds, from designers to lay people and models," Yoyoh said.
If everything works out as planned, he said, the bill will be passed in June.
Meanwhile, legislator Agung Sasongko of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said that the bill will not be passed if objections are strong, particularly from diverse ethnic groups in the country.
"It has to be acceptable to the majority of Indonesians, who have diverse religious, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. If resistance is so strong to the point that the law would cause more harm than good, we may well not pass the law," he said. Pornography, he said, is a very subjective matter, and involves people's personal lives in which the state cannot interfere. "If the law leads to disintegration, then why pass it."