Everybody blames it on (commercial) television<\/p>\n
By Antariksawan Jusuf<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The euphoria of Indonesian politics, which sees
\ndemonstrators take to the streets almost every single day,
\nextends to screened entertainment. Indonesian demonstrators see
\nan easy prey in television stations, protesting for almost any
\npossible reason they can find.<\/p>\n
In the past, people came with a decent reason to lodge a
\ncomplaint, usually some television program they deemed unsuitable
\nfor public viewing. For example, in 1991 they cited the
\ninsensitivity of SCTV in showing the cooking program Wok with
\nYan. An episode of the series, broadcast during the Islamic
\nfasting month, featured the chef cooking pork. Consuming pork is
\nforbidden by Islam, the religion of about 80 percent of the
\ncountry's 205 million population.<\/p>\n
Viewers once protested Buah Bibir, aired on RCTI. It was a
\ntalk show which presented live interviews with "unidentified
\nsources", who tended to be people who violated the standard and
\naccepted norms of Indonesian society, such as homosexuals, women
\nwho had abortions, men who had extramarital affairs, etc. The
\nprotesters claimed these people did not represent the lives of
\naverage Indonesians, and that the station was presenting these
\npeople as if their actions and lifestyles were socially accepted.<\/p>\n
They also protested the screening of Jitu on Indosiar because
\nit was considered to contain an element of gambling, which is
\nforbidden both by the state and religion. The show was taken off
\nthe air in January 1997.<\/p>\n
But these days, when people are free to express their mind
\nabout nearly every subject, protests are held for seemingly any
\npossible reason.<\/p>\n
The most famous example was SCTV's decision to suspend the
\nairing of Latin soap opera Esmeralda following a protest by the
\nFront for Defenders of Islam (FPI) in May. One of the characters
\non the serial is called Fatima, who is the aunt of the leading
\nmale character Ricardo Colunga. The group claimed this was a form
\nof defamation against Islam because Fatima is the name of the
\nProphet Muhammad's daughter.<\/p>\n
The protesters would not accept that the name is not exclusive
\nto Islam. It also rejected a proposal by the station to rename
\nthe character or to edit the character out of the shows.<\/p>\n
Another group, the Committee to Guard National Films, visited
\nSCTV early in June. Five of their representatives held a dialog
\nwith station officials, while some 30 others staged a noisy
\nprotest outside the SCTV office. They demanded the station stop
\nshowing imported Indian movies. Many Indian movies feature
\ncorrupt police officers, whose actions lead to clashes with the
\npublic. The Indian movies, the protesters said, were to blame for
\ninspiring Indonesians to fight against the police.<\/p>\n
Traditional Javanese performances on television such as
\nKetoprak Humor (RCTI) and Ketoprak Canda (Indosiar) have been
\nblamed from decimating the "real" traditional ketoprak. The
\nketoprak TV shows star high-profile comedy group Srimulat and
\nIndonesian celebrities.<\/p>\n
"Many viewers stay away from traditional staged performances
\nbecause they think it is enough to watch them on television,"
\nsaid Endang HS, head of ketoprak troupe Siswo Budhoyo of
\nTulungagung, East Java, as quoted by Media Indonesia daily.<\/p>\n
Such statements are not new. The commercial television
\nstations which have been on the air since 1989 have long been
\nconsidered by some as being partly to blame for the collapse of
\nIndonesia's film industry. Many movie producers have switched
\ntheir focus to more lucrative television series.<\/p>\n
A communications expert, Yasraf Amir Piliang of the Bandung
\nInstitute of Technology, said the tendency for groups to protest
\nagainst television stations was a good seed toward establishing a
\ncivil society.<\/p>\n
"From the point of view of democratization, the voice of the
\ngrassroots is something positive," said Piliang, who is also a
\npatron of the newly established non-governmental organization
\nCommunity of Indonesian Public Television.<\/p>\n
In a way, it is also a product of the now-defunct New Order
\nregime of former president Soeharto, which always set a single
\nmeaning for any public discourse, he said. He cited the example
\nof the special reports of presidential activities which were
\ncarried by all existing television stations during Soeharto's
\nrule.<\/p>\n
"The reports sent a message to all Indonesians that the
\npresident was a democratic person who listened to the voice of
\nthe people," Piliang said.<\/p>\n
But he deplores the way people sometimes express themselves.
\n"They have to learn two things: to which institution they should
\naddress their protests and ethics."<\/p>\n
"I think the change from authoritarian rule to democracy
\nrequires several stages. But the general public does not
\nrecognize a gradual process," he said.<\/p>",
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