T

he West Aceh regency administration has banned the staging of outdoor public music concerts in the regency as they are deemed un-Islamic and in violation of sharia law.

The ban was based on a recommendation by the West Aceh Ulema Consultative Council (MPU), which asked the local administration not to give permission for any form of musical performance.

“We are very firm in forbidding any form of public musical concert because they are contrary to Islamic law and Aceh applies the sharia,” said West Aceh Regent Teuku Alaidinsyah.

The decision came after the administration learned that a rising local star, Zuhdi, better known as Adi Bergek, planned to organize a gig in the regency on April 3, but the event was canceled as the organizer could not obtain a permit. The 24-year-old Bergek has become a new idol in Aceh and is known for his pop-dangdut songs with mellow, yet funny, lyrics.

“We’ve watched some of Bergek’s concerts and we believe that his concerts would do more harm than good for the people of Aceh,” said Alaidinsyah.

He said that his shows usually prompted concert-goers to do behave immodestly.

“Moreover, males and females in the audience are not segregated in his concerts, and that contravenes Islamic law,” said Alaidinsyah.

Several local artists have complained about the decision, saying that it limited their freedom of expression. Alaidinsyah, however, offered alternative ways for artists to showcase their talent.

“We will try to facilitate them to play music, but not in the form of public musical concerts; it’s better if they hold their gigs indoors, in coffee shops or cafes,” he said.

Alaidinsyah said artists should understand that as the only region in the country that applied the sharia, everything they did, especially in the expression of art, had to abide by the law.

In response to the cancelation, Bergek’s concert organizer Dedy insisted that the concert would have been different to other concerts they had arranged previously.

“We met all the requirements. The concert would have been different because it would have been held in the afternoon, and there would have been a separation between men and women in the audience under sharia police supervision,” said Dedy.

The organizer came under fire because at a concert in Banda Aceh that was attended by thousands of people, there was no segregation of male and female audience members. As a result, the Banda Aceh municipality, punished Bergek and banned any form of musical event by him in the city for two years.

In addition, Bergek also had to apologize to the public through the media for staging the concert, which was not in accordance with Islamic law.

Banda Aceh Mayor Illiza Saaduddin Djamal said the incident would serve as a lesson for everyone to improve the standard procedures of entertainment events. She said the Banda Aceh municipality would support any arts activities as long as they did not contradict sharia rules.

Late last year, Banda Aceh also banned its residents from celebrating New Year’s Eve as the administration claimed that it was haram (opposed to Islamic law).

Another district in Aceh enacted a bylaw requiring schools to teach boys and girls separately, and yet another banned women from straddling motorcycles when riding as a passenger.
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