Highly Anticipated Coldplay Concert Sparks Ticket War, Frauds, and Homophobic Debate in Indonesia

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - The November concert in Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) Stadium will mark the first time the band Coldplay is performing in Indonesia. Coldplay fans in Indonesia felt nervous and could not relax as they prepared to buy the tickets on 17 May 2023. 

They tried their best, but some didn't succeed. For many people, the tickets were flying away from their reach too quickly. Social media users posted screenshots that they could not even access the ticket website because over 500,000 people were on the waiting list already. 

Through chaos as the ticket war swirled, it became us against the world situation. The ticket war in Indonesia has been very fierce in recent years; Tickets for K-pop concerts are usually fully booked within minutes. Last month, ticket sales for the Japanese band Radwimps also quickly booked. (Radwimps was the opening act for Coldplay's concert in Japan.) 

Life goes on, it gets so heavy for some fans. Struggling with the feeling that the ticket isn't theirs, some choose to find ticket resellers on Twitter. Buying tickets on Twitter is often a risky venture, but for some it is too tempting. And dozens of people were defrauded. 

Last week, the police said there were 14 people who collectively lost Rp30 million ($2,015) as they tried to buy the Coldplay tickets on social media.

After all the scams that occured, police said at least 60 people became victims per Tuesday. They lost Rp183 million ($12,293) in total.

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police also arrested a young couple aged 22 and 24 who scammed people with Coldplay tickets. 

Spokesperson of the national police, Brigadier General Ahmad Ramadhan, said the police received reports of fraud in the Jakarta area, Riau Islands, and Middle Java. Vice President Ma'ruf Amin also reminded the public to be careful.

"Regarding the Coldplay tickets, yes, I suppose it's not just Coldplay, but also in everything that the public be careful so not to be duped easily," said the 80-year-old VP.

Chris Martin has been a strong advocate for gay rights. The conservative groups in Indonesia use that as the pretext to reject the band. 

The strongest voice comes from PA 212 (Persaudaraan Alumni 212 or Brotherhood Alumni of 212) which strongly rejects Coldplay. But the moderate Indonesia Ulama Council (MUI) also voiced their rejection. The deputy head of MUI Anwar Abbas highlights Coldplay's support toward LGBT community, and he believes Coldplay would ruin the morality in the country.

In Indonesia, the political support toward gay rights in Indonesia is rather dim. Populist politicians and public figures often avoid the advocacy issues to protect the LGBT community. Although ironically, homosexual artists such as Troye Sivan, Sam Smith, and Freddie Mercury are immensely popular in the country.

The government of President Joko Widodo has tried to de-escalate the situation. Minister for Tourism Sandiaga Uno said he has heard the opinions from the religious figures while ensuring the legality of Coldplay's concert. 

"We have opened communication and wanted to hear the inputs and suggestions from the ulamas as a part of our [efforts] to ensure that this concert is within the legal corridor in Indonesia," said Sandiaga. 

Sandiaga said that Coldplay's concert will be beneficial for the economy and tourism. The minister also hopes that Coldplay will be able to have a second day concert in Jakarta.

In 2012, Lady Gaga's concert was finally cancelled after dangerous threats from the conservative groups. Lady Gaga, who is also a strong LGBT rights advocate, was dubbed as vulgar and satanic. 

Since the rejection, Lady Gaga has gained more power and popularity, including winning an Oscar. But Lady Gaga still has not visited Indonesia.

Putu Merta Surya Putra, Hanz Jimenez Salim, Nanda Perdana Putra, and Muhammad Radityo Priyasmoro contributed to this report.