Playboy in Philippines

A group of pastors and preachers belonging to different churches in Manila have filed criminal complaints against editors and publishers of popular men's magazines and so-called smut tabloids before the Manila Prosecutor's Office.

The group was led by Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante, a pastor of the Metropolitan Bible Baptist Church and anti-porn nutter.

Charged in the joint complaint affidavit were editors and publishers of Philippines Playboy magazine, FHM, Maxim, Playhouse, Sagad, Hataw and Toro .

The group accused the respondents of grave scandal and obscene publication. The respondents also cited violation of Ordinance No. 7780 of the City of Manila, which prohibits the printing publication, sale, distribution and exhibition of obscene and pornographic acts and materials.

The group said the magazines and tabloids violated anti-pornography laws for containing obscene, erotic, indecent, or lewd pictures/poses that show, depict, exhibit, or describe nude or semi nude bodies sexual acts, sexual intercourse, private parts of the human body of both male and female, with no educational, artistic, cultural or scientific value.

Abante said this will be the first time that a class suit will be filed against the said magazines and tabloids. Abante said he is hoping that there are still judges who have the moral conscience to look into their complaint.

Two lawmakers yesterday bonded with two bishops to criticize Playboy Philippines magazine, saying it will erode cultural and religious ideals.

Joel Villanueva and Marcelino Teodoro said the publication would compound the problem of pornography, long blamed for the rise of sex-related violence such as rape.

Villanueva said: We should all be vigilant and fight the evils of pornography. Sad to say, we cannot expect this administration to promote righteousness and moral values .

Teodoro said Playboy Philippines should seriously consider the sensitivities of the populace before coming out with their photos, news and feature articles: Filipinos are predominantly conservative and the magazine will degenerate cultural and religious ideals .

The lawmakers echoed the sentiments of Monsignor Pedro Quitorio, media director of Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, and Palawan Bishop Pedro Arigo.

Publisher Beting Dolor reassured critics that the local approach would be “conservative” and will avoid frontal nudity. He describes the magazine as a venue for mature literature and intelligent discussion of issues.

Quitorio is unimpressed: We have more than enough problems now to take care of and now we have to deal with another moral problem?

Update: Go Go Gonzales

15th April

Citizens Battle Against Corruption Representative Cinchona Cruz-Gonzales said the launching of Playboy magazine would “contribute to the increasing medium of promoting pornography and women exploitation in the Philippines.”

Heeding the call of nutter groups against the launch of the Philippine version of the world famous magazine, Gonzales sought to push the enactment of House Bill No. 998 or the IPOD (Immorality, Pornography and Obscenity) Act of 2007.

A Philippines edition of Playboy men's magazine will hit the newsstands next month, but without the nude women that graced the pages of its Western counterparts.

Veteran journalist Beting Laygo Dolor, the editor-in-chief of the Playboy Philippine edition, said the launch of the magazine will be on April 2.

Dolor said the Playboy Philippine edition is a lifestyle magazine for successful men and women: It will be tamer than the US edition but not as tame as the Indonesian edition. It is a mature lifestyle magazine.

Dolor said the local edition will contain serious articles to be contributed by awarded Filipino writers.