Planck's Constant

Interested participant rightly observes the protests against Playboy have less to do with its content and more to do with the fact that the magazine is a prominent icon of Western civilization. Hardline Muslim followers probably see its publication as breaking down a significant cultural barrier.

Despite vacating the offices Playboy is busy with the next edition:

Though the future of Playboy Indonesia is in doubt after violent protests by Islamic fundamentalist groups, the magazine's editorial staff is busily preparing what they hope will be a second edition.

After being evicted from their Jakarta office, staff members are putting together the second edition with the help of information technology.

"We don't have an office to work from, but we are able to get our work done with the help of information technology," Playboy Indonesia deputy chief editor Avian Arifin said on Monday...

Following the incident, the building's management asked Playboy Indonesia publisher PT Velvet Silver Media to vacate the premises, fearing the protests would drive away other tenants.

The Jakarta police have also asked Playboy Indonesia to consider printing and distributing the magazine outside Jakarta, to avoid any more violent incidents.

However, protests against the publication have become so widespread that media distributors and news-stands are afraid to carry the magazine. In Jakarta, many newsstands declined to stock the magazine. In Surabaya, distributors refused a shipment of some 4,000 copies of the magazine's first edition.

Groups opposed to the magazine are doing everything within their power to make sure a second edition does not see light.

On Monday, the Indonesian Mujahideen Council filed a complaint with the police accusing the magazine of promoting obscenity among the young.

From Straits Times

majalah playboy indonesia
Photo Photo: Ryo Saeba.

Despite not dispaying any naked Muslim girls, Playboy may face charges:

JAKARTA, April 20 (Xinhua By Xia Lin ) -- Playboy Indonesia has found itself in troubled water as its maiden issue triggered off protests nationwide in the past two weeks and the police here on Thursday summoned its editor-in-chief Erwin Arnada to investigate its publication in the largest Muslim country of the world.

The summons of Arnada and several other editors was part of the police effort to know whether or not there was criminal offence particularly violation of ethical norms in the magazine, spokesman of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police Chief Commissioner I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said.

The police would also summon expert witnesses in the fields of crime, language and culture together with Islamic leaders in relation with the magazine, he added.

Chief of Jakarta Metropolitan Police Insp. Gen. Firman Gani had earlier proposed that the magazine be banned from circulating in the capital on the grounds certain groups of people were opposed to it.

Meanwhile, Arnada certified that the summons were in response to charges by Islamic groups that the magazine violated articles of the criminal code, which carry a maximum penalty of 16 months in jail.

Previously, police and government ministers had said the country had no laws to ban the magazine, the first edition of which featured no nudity and was less risky than other local and international magazines already for sale in Indonesia.

Despite of its toned-down style to meet this Muslim country's moral standard, protests had jolted some 10 provinces, with newsstands searched and magazines burned, since its first edition hit the streets on April 7.
[...]
Most critics insisted that the name of the magazine alone was grounds for the government to ban it, for it stood for eroticism and luxurious life style of the United States, the magazine's originating country.

"I keep telling them to please review my magazine and compare it with ... adult men's lifestyle magazines already in Indonesia,"Arnada said. "But they keep telling me to change the name Playboy, not the content. It's ridiculous."

In another development, groups opposed to the magazine have started legal procedure to make sure a second edition never sees the light.

On Monday, the Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI) filed a complaint with the police accusing the magazine of promoting obscenity among the young.

China View

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Hat tip to asia pundit for leading us to Tiara Lestari, the Indonesian woman who set off a storm of controversy by appearing in a European edition of Playboy, has said that she will no longer be doing nude photos. She also offers her opinion on Playboy launching an Indonesian edition.

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