Police seek Playboy ban in Jakarta

Jakarta police asked Playboy magazine Thursday to stop publishing its Indonesian edition out of fears it could enrage Muslims.

No laws ban the magazine, which does not feature any nudity and is no more risque than other local and foreign publications sold in the world’s most populous Muslim nation. Ponti Carolus, the director of Playboy’s publishing company, said the magazine would think about the request by police.

Protests of the magazine have been small and peaceful, aside from a demonstration Wednesday in which around 150 Muslims throw stones at its offices in south Jakarta.

Playboy is unlikely to be concerned by the protests because of the publicity; the magazine reportedly sold out within a day of its launch April 7 and was front-page news across the country.

Though it contains no nudity, Islamic politicians and clergy have condemned Playboy, with most saying that the name of the magazine was grounds for the government to ban it.