| Submit your comments on this article | |
| -Short Attention Span Theater- | |
| Jail threat for Indonesian kissing couples | |
| 2004-03-08 | |
| Looks like Indonesia wontâ be challengeing Italy and Brazil for their crowns for least restrictive cultural definition of acceptable PDA anytime soon. Indonesian couples who are caught kissing passionately in public could face jail under proposed legislation. Define passionately, please.
Is there a three strikes rule? "I think there must be some restrictions on such acts because it is against our traditions of decency," said Aisyah Hamid Baidlowi, who heads the parliamentary committee drafting the bill. The bill is awaiting government approval and also bans public nudity, flashing, erotic dancing and sex parties. Are hickies OK? Proposed jail terms range from three to 10 years. Indonesia has the worldâs biggest population of Muslims, but most follow a fairly tolerant interpretation of the religion. Actually 10 years for public nudity is pretty moderate for Ummah. I hope they donât include ankle nudity in the statute. Maybe all foriegn visitors should go with the Julius Erving tube socks to the kneecap option. | |
| Posted by:Super Hose |
| #3 Mike B, it's a mixed culture, for sure. The gyrating [ngebor = drilling] women version of Dangdut is new and pretty controversial -- but should at least prove that Indonesia is unlikely to be overrun by islamofascists anytime soon. Generally, though, the culture reflects traditional Javanese attitudes -- since they tend to run everything, and their worldview is pretty much as follows: The typical Javanese worldview is based on the essential unity of all existence, in which life itself is a kind of 'religious' experience existing in harmony with a universal order. This worldview emphasises inner tranquillity, harmony and stability, acceptance, the subordination of the individual to society, and the subordination of society to the universe. Inter-personal relations are carefully regulated by customs and etiquette to preserve this ordered state. These, of course, are the high ideals of Javanese culture that may not always be realised in actual life, as contemporary events in Java frequently demonstrate. In every culture, there is often a distance between ideal behaviour and realty. Excerpted from: Doing Business in Indonesia |
| Posted by: cingold 2004-3-8 9:53:44 PM |
| #2 I was in Indonesia in December. Funny thing is that Surabaya has a Red light district that is the largest in South East Asia. It's quite a hypocracy, men can have up to five wives, the most popular dance in Indonesia is Dangdut which is sexually suggestive gyrating women but giving your wife a smack on the lips is fineable. I think the more restrictions they put the worse their "values" will get. |
| Posted by: Mike B 2004-3-8 4:01:43 PM |
| #1 I donât think itâs Ummah. See, e.g., in Moscow. Indonesia has always censored what it considers to be Western pornographic tendencies. In contrast, especially in the villages, women might be topless -- but not because of sexual expression. Also, throughout the country, unabashed, open breast feeding is common -- but (again) not because of sexual expression. IMO, Indonesia doesnât want to become like Thailand, a playground for perverts. The countryâs susceptibility to that was well-stated by a protagonist in The Year of Living Dangerously: âHunger is a great aphrodisiac.â |
| Posted by: cingold 2004-3-8 12:20:31 PM |