JAKARTA: A top Islamic cleric in Indonesia has said an upcoming concert by Lady Gaga is “haram,” or forbidden, in Islam and called for a ban of the event. Indonesia Council of Ulema (MUI), the country's highest Islamic institution, Chairman Cholil Ridwan said the concert by the international pop sensation was “intended to destroy the nation's morality.” He added that he had personally never seen a Gaga performance on television and was only making the statement in reference to her “reputation” he received second-hand, The Jakarta Globe reported. Ridwan called on fans to give back their tickets for the June 3 concert, which were sold out in less than two hours, and demand a refund. Cholil took exception with Lady Gaga's “revealing outfits and sexualized dance moves,” claiming that a “female dangdut singer who wore similar costumes would also be haram.” But he claimed Lady Gaga was worse. “She is from the West, and she often shows her aurat when performing,” Cholil said. While he was aware that many Western singers have already performed in Indonesia, Cholil added that it was time to put an end to these “cultural attacks.” Fans of the American singer told Bikyamasr.com that despite the cleric's statement, they have no intention of giving their tickets back. “He's one person and obviously doesn't understand music. Here in Asia, we have all sorts of performers and movies, even sex scenes,” said one young woman in Jakarta. “We are old enough to understand what is right and wrong, we shouldn't ban something because a cleric feels badly.” BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/vsfFY Tags: Cleric, Concert, Forbidden, Indonesia, Islam, Lady Gaga Section: Entertainment, Latest News, Religion, Southeast Asia, Women
