No clear resolution in sight on taming sex and violence on TV
No clear resolution in sight on taming sex and violence on TV
By Brillianto K. Jaya
JAKARTA (JP): The government, as well as and television
viewers, are relieved to hear that the country's TV stations have
agreed to minimize violence and sex in their broadcasts. The
issue of sex and violence on television -- particularly on
private television stations -- has become a public controversy,
without any resolution in sight.
This matter has remained an issue because of the
contradictions involved. Some say scenes depicting violence and
sex on television may make viewers more accepting of aggression.
One thing to remember is that sex and violence in films and on
television is inseparable from censorship. All films must
theoretically first go through the Film Censorship Institute
(LSF) before being eligible for broadcast.
A 1994 government regulation on the Film Censorship Institute
affirms that all material must undergo censorship before being
aired.
"The regulation remains the same in this era of reform," said
Soekarno, chairman of the censorship institute.
The institute comprises 35 members from various government
institutions.
As set forth in the current Broadcasting Law, the institute is
obliged to examine the plot, themes, scenes and dialog of a
program to be aired.
Generally, if a program is considered likely to cause social
unrest because of its political content or themes related to
ethnicity, religion, racial origins and social groupings, then it
will not pass the censorship board. The same is true of programs
depicting violence, sex or pornography. This censorship standard
applies to both commercial and non-commercial programs, including
foreign films.
"But news does not need to be censored because we have to
consider its factuality. Because news must be current and up-to-
date, it would be difficult to censor," Soekarno said.
However, it must be noted that before a program is sent to the
institute for censorship, the television station producers have
already applied their own self-censorship criteria.
In view of the tight censorship procedures, one would expect
not to see scenes depicting violence and pornography on TV films
and other programs. However, such scenes still abound in TV films
as well in some news programs. Besides, commercials and video
clips still contain unfavorable references to ethnicity, religion
and race.
"It is likely that such films have not been censored by us. If
they had been censored, you would not see violence or
pornography, because we implement strict criteria," Soekarno
said.
Obviously, the censorship institute and the self-censoring
division of television stations cannot prune films of all scenes
of violence or sex, because in some cases these scenes are
integral to the film as a whole. Often a films plot is mutilated
by the removal of all references to sex and violence.
In many cases, violent and sexually explicit scenes will be
the sole responsibility of the television station airing them. A
television station will frequently air a film or program which
has undergone internal censorship but has not been scene by the
official censors because of time constraints.
"Production houses often give the material to the TV station
at the last minute," Harianto, a public relations officer at
SCTV, said. "In that case, the TV station does not have time to
send it to the LSF for censorship."
So, one of the reasons why the problem related with scenes of
violence and sex remains unsolved is that the LSF and the
internal censorship division of a television station may at
certain points differ in their censorship standards.
Will a scene depicting a person hitting another in self
defense be taken out because it is violent? Will a scene showing
a policeman shooting dead a ruthless crime boss also be
considered too violent? Is a scene of a husband and wife kissing
to be considered pornographic?
Clearly, there must be standard definitions of violence and
pornography, which both the LSF and the television stations will
stick to. These standards will stop the community disliking
private television stations for airing films containing violent
and pornographic scenes, when in fact these films have passed LSF
censorship.
There are legislations to exact penalties on television
stations airing scenes which should otherwise be prohibited. The
television station may be subject to administrative sanctions.
Its broadcasting activities may be curtailed or suspended, or, in
an extreme case, it may have its broadcasting permit revoked. The
broadcasting law has a maximum jail term of seven years or a
maximum fine of Rp 700 million.
Until now, however, no parties have been brought before a
court for offenses against the provisions stipulated in the Law
on Broadcasting Affairs. Meanwhile, nearly all television
stations, including state-owned TVRI, freely broadcast scenes of
violence and sex. The reason is simple: Films with content like
this earn high ratings, thus attracting advertisers and their
money.
Haryanto admitted that TV stations also consider public
interests when censoring their own material. "Honestly speaking,
the public likes such things (violence and sex), which is
reflected in the high ratings of these films."
The censorship issue remains controversial, and there are even
demands for the disbanding of the censorship board. Film
directors Nan T. Achnas and Mira Lesmana shared the view that the
LSF should be disbanded.
Both Nan and Mira were upset by the censorship of their works:
the TV film Penari (Dancer) and cinema release Kuldesak.
"They cut a scene, which I consider important," Mira said,
referring to a kissing scene taken out of her film.
They proposed the establishment of an agency to classify,
rather than censor, films, similar to the system in the United
States. "Children below 17 years old, for example, will not be
allowed to watch X or XX-rated films," Mira said.
Clearly, the problem of censoring violence and sex in films is
not an easy one to solve. Film director Slamet Rahardjo wisely
said: "When a nation is mature, it will be able to control what
is decent and what is indecent. Which means that it will be able
to properly apply self-censorship."
The writer works in a private television.