http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/05/22/gaga-speaks-out-about-jakarta-drama.html
Gaga speaks out about Jakarta drama Margareth S. Aritonang, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 05/22/2012 2:08 PM A- A A+ (AP Photo/Wally Santana) US pop singer Lady Gaga has broken her silence on the long-running drama over her planned Jakarta concert, making note of censorship concerns and threats of violence against her. After more than a week conflicting statements and international headlines over whether authorities would allow the June 3 concert in Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta to go ahead, Gaga used her Twitter account, @ladygaga, to provide two brief statements. "The Jakarta situation is 2-fold: Indonesian authorities demand I censor the show & religious extremist separately, are threatening violence," she posted on Tuesday. “If the show does go on as scheduled, I will perform the BTWBall [Born This Way Ball] alone.” One of those authorities is Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, who said last week that Gaga "indulges in pornography by wearing revealing costumes" and that she would have a negative influence on young Indonesians. There are also groups like the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), which has expressed strong opposition to the Grammy Award-winning artist, with one FPI chief, Habib Salim Alatas, saying that Gaga brings "the faith of Satan to our country and thus will destroy the nation’s morals". FPI spokesman, Munarman, told reporters on Tuesday that Indonesian Christians should praise the FPI, as well as other Islamic organizations for opposing the American singer Lady Gaga’s concert in the country. "Lady Gaga has obviously misused symbols of Christianity, such as the cross, in her work," he said on the sidelines of a meeting with the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing law and human rights, citing Gaga's song "Judas" as an example. ”We should be praised for what we have done instead of being condemned for threatening religious minority groups,” he added. Meanwhile, the Islamic People’s Forum (FUI), made up of several hard-line groups, plans to stage a protest against American pop diva Lady Gaga on Friday. It claims the protest would be “an action of a million people” that would be held at 1:30 p.m., after Friday prayers, in front of the Jakarta Police headquarters, before a march to the Bung Karno Stadium and the National Police headquarters. FUI has called on all Islam organizations, Muslim students and Islamic study groups to join the protest. “This action aims to urge the police and related institutions to rebuff Lady Gaga,” protest coordinator Abdul Jabbar said on Wednesday. He said that the protest was necessary to prevent Gaga - who he deemed was an American porn star, a member of the Illuminati (a secret society believed to be planning a design for a new world order) and a devil worshipper - from corrupting the morals of young Indonesians. Gaga's ability to perform in the country hinges on whether the National Police issues her a concert permit. Article 15 of the 2002 Police Law stipulates that it is the National Police who have the authority "to issue a permit for, and monitor activities, involving crowds". After saying last week that it would not issue a concert permit for the pop singer, the National Police are now saying that one would be issued if Gaga’s concert promoters can get recommendations from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and the Religious Affairs Ministry. In response to the move made by the National Police, University of Indonesia sociologist Sarlito Wirawan Sarwono has accused police of trying to “make friends” to divert some of the blame over the Lady Gaga controversy. “Police rarely get support from the community, no matter what they do. So this time they make friends with those institutions so they are not the only ones to be blamed,” he said. Sarlito said that behind all the Gaga brouhaha lies the competition to show which group had the most power and could benefit from it. “Unfortunately, we find no role for the state to calm things down and take control of everything,” he said. Meanwhile, a criminal sociologist from the same university, Muhammad Mustofa, said the inconsistency between the two police forces showed that there was no clear criteria dividing them. In related development of the concert, The Immigration Office has revealed that American singer Lady Gaga has already obtained a visa to enter Indonesia. Immigration Office spokesman Maryoto Sumadi said that the visa was issued last month. “Administrative-wise, every requirement has been met,” Maryoto said on Monday, as quoted by tempo.co. Maryoto said the singer, whose full name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, also had a sponsor for her stay in Jakarta. “The status of her sponsor is also clear for us,” he said, without elaborating on the sponsor’s identity. He said that although Gaga has not been barred from entering the country, the Immigration Office cannot provide assurances about her upcoming Jakarta concert as it was up to other government agencies to decide on the event. More than 52,000 tickets, with prices ranging from Rp 465,000 (US$50.75) to Rp 2.25 million, have been sold for the concert since they went on sale on March 10. (png/iwa) ++++ http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/05/23/fui-hold-anti-gaga-rally-friday.html FUI to hold anti-Gaga rally Friday The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 05/23/2012 9:56 AM A- A A+ The Islamic People’s Forum (FUI), made up of several hard-line groups, plans to stage a protest against American pop diva Lady Gaga on Friday. It claims the protest would be “an action of a million people” that would be held at 1:30 p.m., after Friday prayers, in front of the Jakarta Police headquarters, before a march to the Bung Karno Stadium and the National Police headquarters. FUI has called on all Islam organizations, Muslim students and Islamic study groups to join the protest. “This action aims to urge the police and related institutions to rebuff Lady Gaga,” protest coordinator Abdul Jabbar said, as quoted by tribunnews.com on Wednesday. He said that the protest was necessary to prevent Gaga - who he deemed was an American porn star, a member of the Illuminati (a secret society believed to be planning a design for a new world order) and a devil worshipper - from corrupting the morals of young Indonesians. The Grammy Award-winning singer is slated to hold her Born This Way Ball concert in Bung Karno Stadium on June 3. “In every concert, Lady Gaga often shows off symbols of the Illuminati and paganism,” Abdul said. (iwa) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
