Indonesia: Anti-Coldplay protesters accuse band of ‘LGBT propaganda’
Anti-LGBT critics predict thousands at Coldplay protest; hundreds show up
Complete Music Update reports on this month’s Coldplay protest:
Conservative Muslim groups in Indonesia protested outside a Coldplay concert [on Nov. 15] in Jakarta, calling for the cancellation of the show because of the “LGBT propaganda” attendees would be exposed to. That’s mainly on the basis that Coldplay have been supportive of LGBTQ+ people over the years.
Around 300 protesters marched a kilometre to the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium where the band were set to play their first ever Indonesian show to an audience of 70,000 people.
The protesters carried a large banner calling for the concert to be called off, saying that the band’s presence in the country was damaging to its “faith and morals”. When they reached the venue, they booed people arriving for the show and there were some clashes with police.
The Associated Press reports (in an article that has been excerpted and reedited here):
Although Indonesia is secular and has a long history of religious tolerance, a small extremist fringe has become more vocal in recent years.
Lady Gaga canceled her sold-out show in Indonesia in 2012 over security concerns after Muslim hard-liners threatened violence if the pop star went ahead with her “Born This Way Ball” concert.
British pop rock band The 1975 canceled its shows in Jakarta and Taipei after the Malaysian government cut short a music festival in the wake of the band’s lead singer slamming the country’s anti-gay laws and kissing a male bandmate during their performance.
Jakarta is one of [Coldplay’s] top streaming hubs, with 1.6 million fans in the city.
The Indonesian Ulema Council, the country’s most influential Islamic body, asked the show’s promoters, PK Entertainment, to ensure there would be no LGBTQ-themed acts or messages during Wednesday’s concert.
PK Entertainment, founded in 2015, has succeeded in bringing a number of world class musicians such as Ed Sheeran, Shawn Mendes, The Backstreet Boys, and Justin Bieber to Indonesia.
Coldplay is renowned for interlacing its values with its shows, such as the band’s push for environmental sustainability. Lead singer Chris Martin has been known to wear rainbow colors and wave gay pride flags during performances.
Novel Bamukmin, a protest coordinator, recently gave a speech criticizing the government for allowing the band to hold a concert in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country. He had said if the concert was not canceled, thousands of protesters would confront the band on its way from the airport.
“Coldplay has long been a strong supporter of LGBT and its lead singer is an atheist,” Bamukmin said, standing on the top of a truck, “We must reject their campaign, their concert here.”
Martin has said he is an “Alltheist,” a term describing broad spiritual beliefs that don’t ascribe to any specific religion.
