Playboy on Trial in Indonesia

Posted on Dec 7, 2006

seasite.niu.edu

The editor of the Indonesian version of Playboy magazine is on trial for indecency in the world’s most populous Muslim state. The magazine contains no nudity, but the prosecution cited the “inviting expressions” of the underwear-clad models as one of the reasons it is asking for the maximum penalty of 32 months.

Guardian:

Editor-in-chief Erwin Arnada has argued Playboy was good for developing a pluralistic society in Indonesia. But the prosecution told the South Jakarta court that the edition was lewd and broke the law, alleging that Mr. Arnada selected revealing pictures of female models in underwear, some showing partially exposed breasts.

The magazine’s first edition sparked protests in Indonesia in April although it had no nudity and less flesh was visible in the issue than many other magazines on sale in the world’s most populous Muslim country.

“Photos, drawings and articles in Playboy Indonesia magazine were results of the defendant’s selection. They were unsuitable for civility and could arouse lust among readers so they violated feelings of decency,” said prosecutor Resni Muchtar, who is demanding the maximum sentence.

“The models also had inviting expressions on their faces,” he added.

The subsequent editions of the magazine are still on sale in Indonesian cities and there has been no government move to ban it.

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