 The
Aceh office of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission has proposed a draft of
the province's broadcasting qanun , or bylaw, that will be used as a standard to
censor films, TV and programs to ensure they adhere to Islamic law.
The draft, however, received strong opposition from the local branch
of the Independent Journalists Association (AJI), which objected on the
grounds that the proposed measure violated press freedom laws.
Mukhtaruddin Yakob, head of the local branch of the AJI, said the
draft had been submitted at the end of January to the governor's office
for preliminary review: The proposed qanun is inconsistent with the
[national] Press Law and the Broadcasting Law, he told the Jakarta
Globe.
Mukhtaruddin said the qanun would require inappropriate censorship of
the program content of broadcasters operating in the staunchly Islamic
province.
The proposed bylaw would require radio and television stations to
broadcast live the obligatory weekly prayer on Fridays and prohibit them
from airing crime reconstructions, obscene material and sexual
harassment cases.
It also bans broadcasters from airing fund-raising efforts that
are not in the Muslims' interests, Mukhtaruddin said.
Under the qanun, movies, television shows (including soap operas and
documentaries) and commercials would be subject to censorship by the
Aceh Film Censorship Board and Aceh Film Advisory Board (Bapfida).
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