Gus Dur stands behind Inul

Gus Dur stands behind Inul

JAKARTA: Former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid has come
out in defense of Inul Daratista, the popular dangdut singer who
some religious leaders have criticized for her erotic style of
dancing.

Gus Dur, himself a Muslim cleric, said that those who
criticized Inul were misusing religious precepts as a pretext to
suppress freedom of expression.

He particularly singled out veteran dangdut singer Rhoma
Irama, who is known as the "king of dangdut" by his fans.

"Nobody has the right to curtail other people's creativity,"
he was quoted by Media Indonesia daily as saying. "Oma Irama
should not act like a king. We have to fight all attempts to
suppress freedom of expression."

Rhoma Irama, in his capacity as chairman of the Association of
Indonesian Dangdut Singers, summoned Inul to his office on Sunday
to convey the association's objections to her dancing style.

Officials from the Indonesian Ulemas Council earlier denounced
Inul's dancing as haram (forbidden under Islamic law) and called
for her to repent. --JP

;REUTERS;
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Guesswhat-Diana-note
Diana notes to be auctioned
JP/20/guess

Diana notes to be auctioned

GRAY, Maine: Eight letters Princess Diana wrote to the late
fashion editor Liz Tilberis will be sold at auction later this
week, the auctioneer said on Monday.

The letters, as well as a signed Christmas card to Tilberis,
are unusual in their warmth, said James Cyr, whose Cyr Auction
Gallery will offer the correspondence on Wednesday in this Maine
town as part of a 600-lot sale. Gray is located about 25 miles
north of Portland.

"Diana was a fairly prolific letter writer and she wrote lots
of cordial little notes, thanking people for their interest in
the Royal Family. But these were personal," said Cyr.

Cyr said more formal notes have sold in the US$4,000 range.

Some 200 to 300 people are expected to attend the auction and
phone bidders are lining up from New York, Europe and even
Kansas, Cyr said.

He could not confirm a report that one of the phone bidders
was from the family of Diana's companion, Dodi Al Fayed, who died
in the 1997 Paris car crash that also claimed her life. --Reuters