Tina Susilawati – Protesters from the Anti-LGBT National Movement (Geranati LGBT) went to the British Embassy in Jakarta on Friday November 10 to convey their opposition to a concert by British band Coldplay.
The demonstrators gave speeches rejecting the planned Coldplay concert in Indonesia because they say the band campaigns for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) people. They threatened to set fire to the stage if the Coldplay concert goes ahead.
"Don't let the event go ahead, the Islamic community will be angry, the people will be angry, everyone will bring petrol and we'll set fire to Coldplay's stage", said one of the speakers in front of the Embassy on Friday.
And it was not just the issue of LGBT, the protesters also demanded that the Coldplay concert be cancelled because of the current situation in Palestine.
"It's not that we are against concerts. This isn't any old concert. It's because they'll be LGBT propaganda in it", they said.
"Even if was an ordinary concert at this time there are lots of people being massacred in Palestine that we should be mourning, why should they force us to have fun", they added.
They also regretted that those that have bought Coldplay concert tickets could have used the money to donate to Palestine because of the war taking place with Israel.
"The cheapest tickets that can be bought are reportedly 2 million rupiah, the most expensive being 11 million rupiah. Can you imagine if all of that was donated to Palestine?", they asked.
Earlier, calls have emerged for the Coldplay concert in Jakarta to be cancelled. The reason being the issue of the British band's support for LGBT.
Coldplay will hold be holding a concert at the Bung Karno Sports Stadium (GBK) on Wednesday November 15. (jbr/jbr)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Massa Lanjut Demo di Kedubes Inggris, Ungkap Alasan Tolak Konser Coldplay".]
