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SBY advised not to sign porn bill
Presidential Advisor Adnan Buyung Nasution recommended President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono not sign or ratify the recently passed pornography bill, as its enforcement could threaten the country's plurality
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Presidential Advisor Adnan Buyung Nasution recommended President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono not sign or ratify the recently passed pornography bill, as its enforcement could threaten the country's plurality.
"I have recommended the President not sign or ratify the porn bill. He has the right to do so and it is not against the Constitution," he told The Jakarta Post here Thursday.
Buyung said that by not signing the bill, the public would see that the President considers maintaining the unity of the nation a priority.
The House of Representatives passed the controversial porn bill last month despite opposition from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Prosperous Peace Party (PDS). The bill has endured strong protest from human rights activists and pluralist organizations, as some articles in the bill were deemed contentious enough to spark disintegration.
"The Constitution says a bill passed by the House is supposed to be signed by the president within 30 days. If not, the bill will still become a legitimate law. However, by not signing it, the president rejects the mainstream ideas and political interests of the House," Buyung said.
He added that the president might not issue a government regulation to implement the law.
"The law is still legitimate without the regulation. However, we must see the applicability of the law from sociological and philosophical aspects. It will be an unwanted, useless law and won't survive in the society," he said.
"I believe the President is wise enough to see the pros and cons, nationwide, of the porn bill. As some articles in the bill remain debatable, his not ratifying the bill should be taken into account," Buyung said.
Some provinces -- including Bali, Papua, North Sulawesi and East Nusa Tenggara -- have rejected the bill.
After meeting with Buyung, Deputy of East Nusa Tenggara's Sikka Community Forum John Balla, said that the community had written statements rejecting the porn bill.
"We come to Jakarta to voice our objection to the bill. We hope the president considers our voice before making the decision to ratify the bill. The bill generalizes our diverse culture and intervenes in our private lives," he said.
"There are unique practices and rituals in every culture that could be categorized as pornographic once the bill becomes law. The implementation of the bill would outlaw the culture of certain communities," he added.
John said the bill will lead to the disintegration of Indonesia, whose citizens had agreed to live peacefully and in harmony in diversity under Pancasila and the Constitution.
"If the porn bill becomes law and is forced on our society, we will propose a judicial review to the Constitutional Court," he said.
Buyung concurred, urging NGOs and the community to unite with legal aid institutions to present "a perfect argumentation of their rejections to the Constitutional Court, so the court would review or cancel the law". (pmf)
