No formal complaint, no investigation, police said, after a video circulated showing a fan appearing to touch the chest of a member of idol group JKT48 after their concert in Sukoharjo, Central Java.
The incident occurred at a mall in Sukoharjo on June 28. As security personnel ushered JKT48 members off the stage, one male fan reached towards the girls and looked to have managed to grope the chest of one idol at one point.
Sukoharjo Police said it questioned JKT48’s management over the incident, but conceded that its hands are tied in terms of launching an investigation.
“[Management] said there was no harassment towards JKT48 members or any other problems,” Sukoharjo Police Chief Wahyu Nugroho said today.
Wahyu explained that under 2022 Sexual Violence Law, a formal complaint must be filed by an adult sexual violence victim in order to launch a police investigation.
On a separate matter, the viral video wrongly tagged the location of the concert in Solo instead of Sukoharjo. This prompted a clarification from Solo Mayor Gibran Rakabuming, who condemned the sexual harassment incident nonetheless.
Curiously, despite the absence of a formal complaint from JKT48’s management, the group canceled their Bandung show scheduled for yesterday at the last minute, citing “technical, non-technical, and safety concerns.”
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lydia says
You could argue that management who parades their artists this way, don’t find groping a problem.