Teens Reportedly Face Blasphemy Charges, Jail Time in Indonesia for...Dancing to Maroon 5

For many American teens, dancing is second nature, but for at least five young girls living in Indonesia, busting a move to Maroon 5 -- and recording it on video -- may come at a price. After a clip of the teenagers jumping and jiving to the band's song, "One More Night," surfaced, the girls are reportedly being slapped with blasphemy charges.

Grievances against the teens were apparently filed after a video capturing them dancing gained popularity on the Internet. The Jakarta Globe has more about the ramifications that they face in a nation known for harsh blasphemy laws:

Five high school students in Tolitoli, Central Sulawesi, who recorded themselves dancing to a Maroon 5 song and praying, have been expelled from school and face time in juvenile detention for “tainting religion” after the video surfaced on the Internet.

The five girls were trying to kill time between an hours-long break from classes in the afternoon of March 9 when they made the video.

Photo Credit: YouTube

At issue is the notion that the girls were apparently mixing traditional prayer movements in with their dancing -- an accusation their school's headmaster highlighted when letting authorities and the media know about the video's contents. The school's leader reportedly tipped police off after learning about the dance-themed prayer clip from a teacher at the school.

"The students were performing Sholat [prayer] movement with dancing while alternately reciting [the] Koran and turning on ‘One More Night’ music," the leader said. "The activity was recorded with a mobile phone of one of the students and they forced other student to hold the phone for a duration of five to six minutes."

In addition to academic ramifications, the girls also face very-obvious legal recourse. They've already purportedly been charged with blasphemy against religion under 156 of Indonesia's criminal code and other charges, according to some outlets, could follow. While they have reportedly not been arrested yet, the legal proceedings against them continue.

It's unclear who uploaded the video, but it can be viewed, below:

Blasphemy is a serious charge in Indonesia, where individuals can be detained for up to five years if convicted. As the Huffington Post notes, religious freedom continues to be a hotly-contested issue in the Southeast Asian country, where many believe that individual rights are too fervently restricted.

(H/T: Huffington Post)

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