Comments: Halal certification demanded for TV shows

Paper Edition | Page: 8

Aug. 1, p. 5

The West Java chapter of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPID) and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) have come up with the idea of giving a halal certification to radio and TV programs to prevent any pornographic content.

“TV programs are like food. If food is for our body, then programs are for our soul,” said Salim Umar of MUI West Java branch.

Your comments:

If a Korean soap opera shows scenes of people eating noodles, is that haram? It is, because usually the soup contains pork stock.

If an American movie shows two friends watching TV while drinking beer, is that haram? What if the leading star is Jewish? What if there’s no sexual content, but the show is violent? What if the radio program is about a restaurant review in Chinatown or Batak taverns? Should it come with a “contains pork” label?

I could go on all day. As a West Javanese I have the right to know.

Mario

Here is what you do: give them a remote control with instructions, and they can change to any channel that they want. Yes, they have freedom to do that.

And they can watch programs that have content that follow religious values, as long as it is profitable for the free and independent stations. Yes, they have the freedom to do that.

And they can buy a TV or radio station to put on anything that they want — they would have pay for it though. Yes, they have the freedom to do that.

Brien