Youths group threatens Bandung movie theater

Yuli Trisuwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

The Ka'bah Youth Movement Muslim organization has threatened all movie theaters in the West Java capital of Bandung to stop showing American and British films until the countries stop attacking Iraq.

Head of the United Development Party (PPP)-affiliated group, Lia Nurhambali, said Tuesday that the move was part of a campaign to boycott all products from the United States and its allies.

"We give the owners of the movie theaters three days to comply with our demands, otherwise we will move against them," said Lia, who is also a councillor at the Bandung legislature representing Vice President Hamzah Haz's PPP.

During the check, Lia said the group activists will pull down billboards and posters of the films and burn them and ask movie goers to cancel their plan to watch American or British films.

"But we will not resort to violence during our move," he said.

He said a letter was sent on Tuesday to all 17 theaters across the city.

The group also called on all television stations in the country not to run American and British films while the attack on Iraq continued.

Edisona Nainggolan, spokesman for PT Kharisma Jabara Film, a company with exclusive rights to American films in West Java, said the demands were excessive.

"During the Academy Award presentation it was obvious that many American artists opposed the U.S.-led attack on Iraq? American films are different from Bush," Edisona said, referring to the U.S. President George W. Bush.

He said the demand for American films had been on the decline recently with the entry of European films.