Petition To Ban BLACKPINK From Indonesian TV Reaches Almost 100,000 Signatures

An online petition to take a BLACKPINK commercial off Indonesian television has reached over 98,000 signatures.

The petition was started by Maimon Herawati, a journalism lecturer at Padjadjaran University, and is addressed to the KPI or the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission.

Maimon believes that BLACKPINK is too scantily clad in the Shopee commercial for Indonesian TV.

“A group of women wearing scantily clad clothes that barely covers their aurat — what kind of message are we instilling to the pure souls?”

— Maimon Herawati

Aurat are parts of the human body which must, according to Islam, be covered from the sight of others with clothing and can be translated as one’s “private parts”.

The petition signers also took issue with the fact that the ad broadcasts during children’s programs.

“Shopee ads that use the South Korean group BLACKPINK are often played on children’s programs… What message do you want to put on the pure souls? That lifting clothes up high with tempting glances will bring them worldwide? That objectification of the female body is legitimate?”

— Maimon Herawati

The petition calls for parents and other petition signers to not only sign the petition but to also boycott Shopee.

Some fans from Indonesia have begun to criticize the petition and those who signed it.

81.000 people from my country signed a petition on https://t.co/WLJ0eJcFIt to ban a BLACKPINK commercial because they were… wearing…. minimal clothing. and… they…. are afraid…. kids… would… watch it. Why. are we. so close-minded. pic.twitter.com/ZpqNxwBakX

— hearth's warming 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐝 (@brinaisprfct) December 9, 2018

That petition about Blackpink's "short" outfits are ridiculous. My country is so funny sometimes.

— candy. (@sujileecious) December 9, 2018

So some stupid af people in my country wanted to ban a TV ad that featured Blackpink because she claimed the girls' clothes are too provocative that kids are not supposed to see that. So she started a petition and do you know how many signed it? More than 50k Pfffttttt …..

— 🍯🐸 (@hanbebe__) December 8, 2018

Maimon Herawati has created petitions to boycott Korean girl groups from Indonesia before.

if you dont remember her, she's the one who made that dumb petition to cancelled SNSD coming here and also compared them to porn pic.twitter.com/3JgJ3mrssu

— 𝘼𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙮 𝙀𝙙𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙠 (@captaenken) August 17, 2017

A counter-petition has begun circulating, petitioning theIndonesian Broadcasting Commission not to remove the ad. The petition has over 40,000 signatures as of now.