OnlyFans model’s arrest sparks debate on Indonesia’s strict anti-pornography law amid reform calls

Fransiska Candra Novitasari, a 25-year-old model and content creator also known as Siskaee, was arrested by Jakarta police at her flat in Yogyakarta on January 25. She and 10 others had been named suspects in the production of an adult film that was released online.

Siskaee was previously jailed for 10 months in 2022 for content related to her OnlyFans account.

Police said Siskaee was arrested last week after ignoring two previous summonses for questioning. Her lawyer protested against the arrest, arguing Sisakee had lodged a pre-trial motion at the South Jakarta District Court questioning the legality of her status as a suspect.

“The police should have waited for the verdict of the court before making the arrest,” said Siskaee’s lawyer, Tofan Agung Ginting.

Police, however, said they had enough evidence to proceed with the case and that Siskaee would be detained for 20 days while she was interrogated.

Siskaee’s arrest is part of a police crackdown on a South Jakarta “adult film ring” that has been the subject of intensive investigation by law enforcement agencies, who have offered up frequent updates to feed frenzied coverage by the local media.

“Our aparat [law enforcement agencies] are always in their element when coming down hard on small-time ‘morality’ offenders like porn sites,” Linda, a 20-year-old Indonesian adult content creator, said sarcastically.

Linda, who asked that her real name not be used, said the Indonesian police performed their duty with “lightning speed” and “high efficiency” when investigating sex-related scandals.

“A far cry from [the way they tackle] other more mundane crimes. A friend of mine reported his car stolen two years ago and it’s still missing!”

Linda is one of many “faceless” Indonesian adult