UK band The 1975 nix Indonesia, Taiwan gig after Malaysia LGBTQ uproar
“The 1975 regret to announce that their forthcoming shows in Jakarta and Taipei will no longer be going ahead as planned,” the band said in a statement Sunday on the We The Fest Instagram page.
“The band never take the decision to cancel a show lightly and had been eagerly looking forward to playing for fans in Jakarta and Taipei but unfortunately, due to current circumstances, it is impossible to proceed with the scheduled shows.”
The Indonesian government and festival organisers are yet to comment on the cancellation.
The band’s next scheduled concert is the Lollapalooza festival in the United States in early August.
Healy had told Malaysian fans on stage that the band had thought of pulling out of the festival on Friday, saying: “I do not see the point of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with.”
Despite several local by-laws discriminating against LGBTQ individuals in Indonesia, its national laws have never made homosexuality a criminal offence.
Source: CNA