PRESIDENT SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL ANTI-PORNOGRAPHY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002213

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, DRL/AWH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/09/2018
TAGS: PGOV KISL SOCI ID
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL ANTI-PORNOGRAPHY
BILL INTO LAW

REF: JAKARTA 2083 AND PREVIOUS

JAKARTA 00002213 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d).


1. (U) This message was coordinated with Consulate General
Surabaya.


2. (C) SUMMARY: President Yudhoyono has signed into law the
controversial anti-pornography bill. Opponents--who see the
law as a potential threat to civil liberties--plan to
challenge the legislation in the courts. By signing the law,
President Yudhoyono was clearly catering to conservative
Muslim parties, a calculated move ahead of next year's
elections. That said, he has been careful not to be seen as
a strong supporter of the measure and his advisors have
indicated that they will urge authorities to enforce the bill
in a lenient, flexible manner. END SUMMARY.

PRESIDENT SIGNS BILL


3. (U) The Presidential Palace has confirmed that President
Yudhoyono has signed into law the anti-pornography bill. The
Indonesian parliament had passed the bill on October 30 (see
reftels). The President had 30 days to sign the bill into
law. If he had not signed the bill, it would have become law
after 30 days in any case per Indonesian regulation. The
President's action was not done publicly; perhaps because of
the controversy it has engendered (see below),he signed the
legislation behind closed doors. One of his advisors was
quoted as stating that the President signed the law because
it was already a matter of "national consensus."

DEEP CONCERNS


4. (SBU) Supporters of the law say its aim is to constrain
the distribution of pornography in Indonesia. It provides
for long-term jail terms and large fines for violation of the
bill's provisions. The bill was strongly supported by
Muslim-oriented parties in the DPR, including the influential
Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). These parties make a point
of regularly criticizing modern Indonesian society as being
socially "decadent" and too influenced by Western values.


5. (SBU) That said, the law has sparked strong
opposition--including street protests--from secular leaning
Indonesians and civil libertarians. While underscoring their
opposition to pornography, opponents charge that the bill is
overly broad. They note that its "Article I" defines
pornography so liberally that a person could easily be
arrested for design, art or fashion having to do with the
human body. Some women have also wondered whether they could
be arrested for wearing certain types of clothes in public.
Another controversial provision allows ordinary citizens to
get involved in the enforcement of the law, potentially
leading to vigilante action by Muslim groups. Overall,
opponents have told us that the bill could easily be used by
Muslim religious conservatives to constrain personal
liberties.


6. (SBU) Criticism has also come from several largely
non-Muslim sections of Indonesia. The governor of the
predominantly Hindu province of Bali has publicly stated that
the province holds the bill to be unconstitutional and
therefore will not implement its provisions when it becomes
law. The Head of the Bali Tourism Board (BTB),Ida Bagus
Ngurah Wijaya, said the trade group supported a legal
challenge to the law. There has also been opposition from
the mainly Christian region of Papua in eastern Indonesia.

IMPLEMENTATION IS THE QUESTION


7. (C) The main question at this point is how stringently
authorities will implement the law. Already, the GOI has
indicated that it will be cautious in this area. Indonesian
Vice President Jusuf Kalla--who supports the law--has

JAKARTA 00002213 002.2 OF 002


stressed that implementation must be done carefully. An
advisor to the President told us the same thing. (Note:
Presidential legal adviser Adnan Buyung Nasution has already
publicly announced his opposition to the law, noting that he
had failed to convince the President to oppose it.) Dealing
with the issue of provincial-level concerns about the law, a
senior official with the Ministry of Law and Human Rights
told us that regional governments would have great leeway to
enforce the law according to local values.

TEA LEAVES INDICATE A LEGAL FIGHT


8. (C) Several organizations intend to challenge the law in
the Constitutional Court. Patrick Daulay, Chair of the
Protestant Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI),recently
told poloff that the law violates constitutional protections
and will face legal challenge. Legal Aid Institute for Women
(LBH-APIK) and other major civil society organizations told
us they would join forces in appealing to the courts. There
is some information to the effect that the Constitutional
Court will be sympathetic to any appeal.


9. (C) By signing the law, President Yudhoyono was clearly
catering to conservative Muslim parties, a calculated move
ahead of next year's elections. That said, aware of the
controversy over the matter, he has been careful not to be
seen as a strong supporter of the measure. As noted, it all
comes down to implementation: if authorities implement the
law in a harsh, inflexible manner, there will be problems,
including more street protests.

HUME