Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – Edward "Edo" Hutabarat held up the coffee-table book he wrote on traditional Indonesian fashion, including attire with plunging necklines and tightly cinched corsets, during a House of Representatives hearing on the pornography bill. Known for his efforts to promote the kebaya traditional blouse, the designer said the tank-top also was part of Indonesian clothing. "Am I also subject to the bill?" Edo asked.
He was part of a delegation led by lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis who met with Commission III on legal affairs to discuss the recent case of models and photographers accused of obscenity.
A militant group reported models Isabel Yahya and Anjasmara as well as photographer Davy Linggar and arts curator Agus Suwage for pictorial during the CP Biennale 2005 Urban/Culture in Jakarta last year. Todung said criminalization of the arts may lead to self-censorship among artists, filmmakers and writers, which eventually would undermine Indonesia's cultural riches.
He warned the porn bill would cause social unrest if it was passed without accommodating the concerns of some groups in society. "Do we need the bill? Couldn't we just use the Criminal Code?" Todung said, adding that many articles in the bill would be prone to manipulation.
Critics say the bill, carrying heavy penalties for the display or promotion of pornography, infringes on the private domain. Articles ban kissing in public, sensual dance and the exploitation of sexual activity in literature, paintings, photographs or recordings.
Art scholar Aminuddin said a group could not brand something as pornographic, because it took "stages" to develop an understanding of an artist's intent. He said nudity and appreciation of the human body was part of the classical tradition.
"Nudity is certainly not obscenity," he asserted. "I understand your case. I don't agree with certain groups that are forcing the country to impose Arabic values on other groups here," legislator Eva K. Sundari of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said.
Deliberation of the bill has been prioritized by several Muslim-based parties, particularly the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the United Development Party (PPP).
PPP legislator Lukman Hakim told the delegation that the arts should also be considered from a religious point of view. "PPP is not against art, but there should be some limitations," he said.
Separately, former president and PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, former House speaker Akbar Tandjung and former vice president Try Sutrisno urged legislators to be prudent in deliberating the bill.
"Don't let the bill disturb the lives of people because the essence of a law is for the benefit of the public," Megawati said in Denpasar, Bali, one of the main hubs of opposition to the bill.