Moslem leaders want `True Lies' withdrawn

JAKARTA (JP): The influential Indonesian Ulema Council appealed to the authorities yesterday to stop the screening of the action-comedy film True Lies because of the feud it has caused.

The council refrained from categorically stating that the film denigrates Islam as some of its members had earlier proclaimed.

"Because the film has generated a debate that is now causing unrest among the people, the executive board of the council is recommending that the film be withdrawn from circulation," it said in a statement issued at the end of a plenary meeting.

Ironically, it was one of the council's members who started the controversy by echoing an international concern that True Lies was an affront to Islam and that it be withdrawn.

The Censor Board, in the face of criticism, last week invited members of the ulema to see the film and then pass judgment. A member of the ulema who sits on the censorship board defended the film.

The film, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, is about an American hero who busts a gang of Middle East terrorist out to sabotage America.

Movie house operators said that True Lies, which most rate as a mediocre film, has drawn a larger audience since the controversy began in Indonesia. (par/emb)