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taking steps Indonesia to block pornographic Web sites

Indonesia is taking steps to block pornographic Web sites before the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, the country's information minister said Thursday, defying local criticism that the plan amounted to censorship and was unworkable. 

"I've asked all Internet service providers to filter porn content by using anti-porn software," the information minister, Tifatul Sembiring, said in a text message. 

Mr. Sembiring, of the conservative Islam-based Prosperous Justice Party said he made the request last week and expected Internet service providers to take one month to implement it before the start of Ramadan on Aug. 11 . He did not say how many sites would be blocked. 

Free speech advocates have accused the authorities of arbitrarily enforcing the country's controversial 2008 anti-pornography law, which has been criticized as draconian and overly broad. Religious minorities in this Muslim-majority country have been among the most vocal critics. The government's attempts to clamp down on Internet pornography have also been criticized as costly and unenforceable, given the vast scale of the Web. Local news media earlier this week quoted an official from the country's association of Internet service providers as saying it would cost about $110 million to attempt a ban. 

Mr. Sembiring disputed that estimate but did not say how much he thought the plan would cost. He said Internet providers could use government keyword-filtering software free of charge. 

He said the filter would not be 100 percent effective but was a "first step to minimize the distribution of pornography. " 

A short message on Mr. Sembiring's Twitter account announcing the schedule drew mixed reactions. Many Indonesian Twitter users relayed a chain message criticizing what they called the minister's "shallow logic." 

Mr. Sembiring floated a similar plan to filter Internet content earlier this year but withdrew it amid strong public opposition. 

But conservatives' calls for stricter online controls have gained force since June, when pixelated video clips allegedly showing three of the country's most popular celebrities having sex spread rapidly online, causing a media sensation. 

A male pop singer, Nazril Irham, could be imprisoned for up to 12 years as one of the first people arrested under the anti-pornography law, which was championed by Mr. Sembiring's party. The two women from the videos, both television presenters, have also been declared suspects over the videos. 
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