The leader of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), Rizieq Shihab, has not been having a very good week so far. On top of being named a suspect by the West Java police for insulting the state ideology of Pancasila and founding father Sukarno, he’s also having to deal with rumors of a sex scandal after information, including audio recordings, photos and chat logs, was anonymously posted on Sunday purporting to detail his adulterous affair with a woman named Firza Hussein.
Rizieq and other FPI officials have dismissed the information as slanderous lies manufactured by his political enemies to destroy his reputation. But the truth about the rumors have now become a legal issue, as police have announced that they will be questioning Rizieq and Firza about the leaked information as part of an official investigation.
“Yes, for sure, we will definitely [question Rizieq and Firza about the case], then we will ask for information,” said Jakarta Police spokesperson Argo Yuwono on Wednesday as quoted by Detik.
The legal justification for their investigation into the scandalous rumors is a criminal report, filed by the Anti-Pornography Student Alliance on Monday, which reported three sites (including a site titled “’baladacintarizieq”, which is believed to be the original spreader of the leaks) for hosting the highly explicit information about the alleged affair in violation of Indonesia’s Pornography Law and Information and Electronic Transaction Law (UU ITE).
Police deemed the report to have enough merit to warrant further investigation, which is why Rizieq and Firza will be questioned about it. They have not yet made clear if either of the two could be potential criminal suspects in the case.
Indonesian law prohibits both the creation and distribution of pornography. A somewhat similar sex scandal case, involving leaked information, infamously led to the imprisonment of musician Nazril “Ariel” Irham in 2010.
Firza was arrested by police on Tuesday, although not in relation to the sex scandal rumors, but for treason allegations. Firza was also one of the 11 people arrested on December 2 for her involvement in an alleged treason plot.
