Protective protest song: Jakarta Post

But the song removed the song from all streaming platforms due to weeks of harassment by low-level police, now an instant hit and a conversation for everyone with the ability to access the internet, inspired dozens of covers and became a struggle for President Prabowo Subianto sipianto simulations in recent days.

Even the internet's most polarizing music critic Anthony Fantano is involved as he publishes an online video that defends the song.

Now, banning “Bayar Bayar Bayar” is the gold standard for many terms “Streisand Effect” or when censorship provides its intended effect opposite.

However, despite police efforts to ban songs from excellent albums. Gelap Gempita (Dark Act), damage has been caused.

Police harassment led to an incredible campaign that cost the private lives of two band members.

Sukatani's members modeled on the Russian punk trio Trio Pussy Riot, a musical group who masks his identity as an anonymous musician wearing masks and other Regalia performances.

In the video apology – tape recorded under coercion – the duo are forced to offer MEA Culpa without a mask, actually exposing their identity to the world.

Shortly after the video was published, the band's singer Novi Citra Indianati was forced to work as a primary school teacher at an Islamic school in Purbalingga.

From a more personal perspective, police harassment must have been the trauma of Novi and her bandmate Muhammad Syifa al Lutfi, who was reportedly “disappeared” while traveling to Banyuwangi, East Java.

Sukatani's ordeal is a clear reminder, even after 25 years reconstructioncensorship is still a fact of life for artists, and although the threat of music censorship is rare in the current political situation, it does happen, but it may be as ugly as the authoritarian regime in the past.

Under General Suharto's new order system, state institutions have been looking for signs of objection and can always find reasonable reasons, even in opaque forms of protest.

Considering the case of Iwan, the country's most famous folk singer, they were singing a song titled ” Mbak Tini (Sisters of Tini). The song tells the story of a woman selling prostitution after being fired. The song is considered an insult to Soeharto's wife, Siti Hartinah, the nickname Thame Madame tin.

In 1991, the Ministry of Information refused to grant the band Elpamas a broadcast license to play the song “Pak Tua” (The Elderly), considering that the song was a sly dig of the aging Soeharto.

But even with the best efforts of a new order review machine, the songs remained popular, and singers like Iwan Fals were timidly written down more sharp protest songs such as “Bento” and “Bongkar” and later gradually became the people of national protests to abandon Soeharto.

Any attempt to censor the songs, melodies and lyrics in mysterious ways and censorship always fails.

Go and listen to “Bayar Bayar Bayar” and you will find it hard not to be inspired by the courage of the duo. This is also a striking song.