<p>The sentence drew howls of outrage from singer Nazril Ariel's fans in the court and across the Malay-speaking world, while the "freeariel" hashtag shot to the top list of trending topics on microblogging site Twitter.<br /><br />The 29-year-old frontman of rock band Peterpan was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for "giving an opportunity for others to spread, produce and prepare a pornographic video", the judges said in their verdict.<br /><br />Islamist hardliners pelted the police van with rotten eggs and tomatoes as he was escorted to the court, while fans of the husky-voiced heart-throb sang his song "Sahabat" (Friend) and chanted "Free Ariel".<br /><br />Stick-wielding Islamists later beat people on the street outside the court as tempers flared and police struggled to control the two sides.Wearing a dark green sweater over a white pinstriped shirt, Ariel looked calm as the sentence was handed down.<br />He told reporters who mobbed him as he was being led back into custody that he would consider an appeal. "I'll think about it," he said.<br /><br />His fans in court, mostly young women, let out a collective cry of despair as chief Judge Singgih Budi Prakoso condemned him to jail.<br /><br />"I'll miss him terribly because now I won't be able to see him on television. This is too severe because he didn't spread the videos. He should be set free," said sobbing 20-year-old student Yossi.<br /><br />Muslim protesters also complained that the sentence was too light for a man they see as a threat to the moral fabric of the nation of 240 million people, 80 per cent of whom are Muslims.<br /><br />"Muslims are very disappointed with the sentence. According to sharia law adulterers should be stoned to death," said Abdul Qohar Al-Qadsi, an Islamist from hardline vigilante group the Islamic Defenders Front.<br /><br />The two videos, apparently filmed on a mobile phone, showed Ariel having sex on separate occasions with female television celebrities Luna Maya and Cut Tari, who is married to another man.<br /><br />Maya was seen chatting to Ariel in his holding cell before the sentence was handed down.<br /><br />The clips spread virally through Indonesian and Malaysian websites but Ariel has always denied distributing them, saying a studio engineer accessed his personal files from his laptop and uploaded them without his permission</p>
<p>The sentence drew howls of outrage from singer Nazril Ariel's fans in the court and across the Malay-speaking world, while the "freeariel" hashtag shot to the top list of trending topics on microblogging site Twitter.<br /><br />The 29-year-old frontman of rock band Peterpan was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for "giving an opportunity for others to spread, produce and prepare a pornographic video", the judges said in their verdict.<br /><br />Islamist hardliners pelted the police van with rotten eggs and tomatoes as he was escorted to the court, while fans of the husky-voiced heart-throb sang his song "Sahabat" (Friend) and chanted "Free Ariel".<br /><br />Stick-wielding Islamists later beat people on the street outside the court as tempers flared and police struggled to control the two sides.Wearing a dark green sweater over a white pinstriped shirt, Ariel looked calm as the sentence was handed down.<br />He told reporters who mobbed him as he was being led back into custody that he would consider an appeal. "I'll think about it," he said.<br /><br />His fans in court, mostly young women, let out a collective cry of despair as chief Judge Singgih Budi Prakoso condemned him to jail.<br /><br />"I'll miss him terribly because now I won't be able to see him on television. This is too severe because he didn't spread the videos. He should be set free," said sobbing 20-year-old student Yossi.<br /><br />Muslim protesters also complained that the sentence was too light for a man they see as a threat to the moral fabric of the nation of 240 million people, 80 per cent of whom are Muslims.<br /><br />"Muslims are very disappointed with the sentence. According to sharia law adulterers should be stoned to death," said Abdul Qohar Al-Qadsi, an Islamist from hardline vigilante group the Islamic Defenders Front.<br /><br />The two videos, apparently filmed on a mobile phone, showed Ariel having sex on separate occasions with female television celebrities Luna Maya and Cut Tari, who is married to another man.<br /><br />Maya was seen chatting to Ariel in his holding cell before the sentence was handed down.<br /><br />The clips spread virally through Indonesian and Malaysian websites but Ariel has always denied distributing them, saying a studio engineer accessed his personal files from his laptop and uploaded them without his permission</p>