Indonesia's music scene is facing yet another dark point. Sukatani, a synth-punk/post-punk band from Purbalingga, Central Java, was held by the police and forced to clarify one of its protest songs.

A brief profile from Sukatani's record label, Dugtrax Records, Bandcamp: "Duo Sukatani comes from Purbalingga, Central Java. They are active in grassroots social and environmental movements. Their commitment can be seen in the lyrics of their songs from the album Gelap Gempita, written in a straightforward and sharp manner in the Banyumasan dialect. Amidst the prevalence of hip-hop, folk, hardcore punk and indie rock music in activism in Indonesia, Sukatani plays post-punk music with a strong new wave sensibility. Gothic rock's dark tones blend with new romantic melodies and joyful synth-pop. A unique mixture that reminds us of Le Tigre, Kathleen Hannah's punk dance unit (Bikini Kills). This is related to the phenomenon of cross-genre musical tastes within the youth political movement in Indonesia. The fierce masculine nature began to go hand in hand with the feminine popular culture, such as the emergence of K-pop dance in mass actions. The dance floor is no longer isolated within the hedonic space; it now also occupies the protest arena. Protest is the right of all people, irrespective of their various tastes, attitudes, and classes, as well as gender. Besides voicing disgust over system failure and power imbalance, Sukatani also reminds us of how important these voices are when channelled through tendrils of popular art, which are amplified in the grassroots domain. Let's rock and sing to celebrate the vote of no confidence in the political decisions of the capitalist rulers!"

Actually, before the video of Sukatani's clarification, the duo has already been under surveillance by the authorities since its show at Hellprint Fest.

They were also followed, and one of the members, who worked as a teacher, was forcibly dismissed from his place of work. Also, as reported by Serayu News, Sukatani's crew Dilan revealed that the band was stopped when they were about to cross from Bali to Banyuwangi on their way home. There, they were forced to make clarification videos, stripped of their anonymity and apologize for their "Bayar Bayar Bayar" song (translated Bribe Bribe Bribe - relating to the police corruption). Shortly after the news of the intimidation spread, Dilan updated that Sukatani personnel were safe and had not been arrested. "The only update is that they are now safe, there was no arrest, and on their way home. I myself too scared to ask about the chronology", Dilan added.

Sukatani also stated that the song has been removed from all digital platforms and asked the public to delete any recordings or uploads that still circulate on the internet.

Despite apologies to the Chief of Police, many parties have voiced their support for Sukatani. The hashtag #WeStandForSukatani appeared on various social media, accompanied by messages of solidarity from all elements. Real evidence that Sukatani was banned is that the organizers of their last two events were threatened with not being given a crowd permit by the police because Sukatani was there.

The Sukatani's record label/netlabel has also permitted all musicians to freely use, remix or cover Sukatani's song "Bayar Bayar Bayar". Link