INDONESIA: Police to question FPI over attack on 'Playboy' office

Police say Islam Defenders Front must answer for attack

Jakarta Post
Saturday, April 15, 2006

Jakarta --- Police plan to question Monday a member of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) over Wednesday's attack on the building housing the editorial office of Playboy Indonesia in South Jakarta.

A spokesman for the South Jakarta Police, Comr. Suyudi Arioseto, said the police would summon the rally coordinator to begin their investigation underway. He refused to name the coordinator.

"We have video footage of the incident and of course we can identify those who were involved in the attack," Suyudi told the Jakarta Post.

The police decision to take action followed Wednesday's attack, in which protesters pelted the office building with rocks, shattering windows on the ground and lower floors and injuring two policemen. The office of the magazine, on the fourth floor, was not damaged.

They returned Thursday, but were told the magazine had moved to a new location.

Radical Muslims have been angered by the April 5 first edition of Playboy Indonesia, although the publisher kept to an earlier promise not to feature nude pictorials or the soft-core content of the U.S. magazine.

The police have also asked Playboy to suspend publication due to "fierce public rejection", or print outside of Jakarta. They also plan to seek opinions from various figures on whether the content can be considered pornographic.

They also plan to review the content of other erotic men's tabloids and magazines. Under the Indonesian legal system, the media are legal because unlike during the authoritarian Soeharto regime, they are not required to have government licenses.

Information and Communications Minister Sofyan A. Djalil told reporters Thursday at the House of Representative that the government had no authority to stop the publication of Playboy magazine.

He said that even though the content of Playboy gives no "added value", the magazine was legal because Indonesian law supports freedom of the press.

Playboy's senior editorial staff were not available for comment Friday on the police's request. A staff member said all the magazine's executives were "attending a meeting" and could not return calls.

The employee confirmed reports the magazine had relocated its office but refused to give the new address.

Suyudi said the police would provide extra security for the magazine office because they had credible information that hard-line groups planned more attacks.

In Jakarta, Muhammadiyah chairman Din Syamsuddin criticized the government for doing nothing to stop the magazine.

"It's been a few days since the magazine appeared but the government has done nothing (to stop it)," he said.

In Surabaya, newspaper agents refused to distribute 4,000 copies of the magazines for fear of being raided by the groups, Antara newswire reported.

In a press statement, Playboy Indonesia said the Rp 39,000 (US$4.3) magazine was sold out "in less than five days."

Date Posted: 4/15/2006