Jakarta – Indonesian Communication and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring says he hopes all pornographic Web sites will be blocked before Ramadan – and is warning that even written sentences could be classified as violating the law.

The outspoken minister from the Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) said on Thursday that he hoped the controversial new ministry plan would be enacted before the holy fasting month begins on August 11 so that pornography would not interfere with Islamic religious obligations.

Speaking at the Presidential Palace, Tifatul said the ministry was compelled by the Anti-Pornography Law to "protect citizens from the dangers of pornography." "We are just putting the law into practice," Tifatul said.

He could not say which Web sites the ministry would block but said it would be done on a "massive scale." Tifatul also warned people to be aware of the consequences if they violated the law.

"Please be very careful because one can face legal action just by spreading pornographic sentences because it's part of pornography."

On Wednesday, Tifatul acknowledged that he was aware that blocking all Web sites with pornographic content would be nearly impossible. However, he said, with an aggressive campaign and random checks, the government expected that children would have very limited access to such sites.

"We've started by holding meetings with Internet service providers because they're the ones with the power to grant access to the Internet across Indonesia," he said.

Tifatul has previously said the move was driven by a request from the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) to restrict access to pornography on the Internet. (Antara/JG)