The Head of the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) in Pekanbaru, Ilyas Husti, has decided that the MUI needed to issue a letter rejecting the visit of Julia Perez (aka Jupe) from visiting the city, and he has done just that. Since when has the MUI been the arbiter of travel in Indonesia and since when have they had the power to ban the travel of private citizens? Furthermore, since when has the MUI had the power to regulate who political parties or any other organization invite to perform at the functions of these organizations?
The MUI really needs to pull its head out of the sand before it gets the communal backlash boot in the arse. This is the same sort of thing you would expect to see from fundamental Muslim elements who deem themselves as arbiters of what is entertainment. I always thought that the MUI liked to consider itself a moderate organization.
A recent example from Indonesia's near neighbours in Malaysia saw an Islamic student organization seeking a ban on Indonesia's "queen of the drill", Inul. Let's face it, both Indonesia and Malaysia have much bigger problems than a little hip wiggling at a political rally or a concert.
The overall expectation was that Jupe would participate in the celebrations that have been planned for Independence Day on 17 August. Independence Day in any country is an important day, one where the freedoms that independence have brought are celebrated by the masses. It is a time to let down the collective hair and enjoy being free. Unfortunately, for the citizens of Pekanbaru, the MUI seems determined to rain on this parade.
The problem seems to be that Jupe's reputation as a bit of a sex symbol proceeds her and the MUI is concerned that this image will get all the local lad's hormones raging and perhaps a bunch of testosterone engorged teenagers will lose the plot. Jupe is a bit of a sensationalist and panders to that image. Her most recent claim to fame involved the packaging of condoms with her latest album release. Considering, the heightened risk of HIV / AIDS in Indonesia, perhaps Jupe should be praised for her convictions rather than blacklisted for them.
Now is a time to celebrate Indonesia's rich cultural and ethnic diversity and not to curtail it. It is sad that the MUI cannot see this simple truth, that sometimes people just need to have fun!
