Rihanna Cancels Show Amidst Security Concerns

The Global War on Terror rarely impacts U.S. celebrities, except when they choose to speak out for or against it. But in this instance, pop princess Rihanna and her handlers have decided to avoid a potentially volatile situation in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta and cancel a show scheduled for tomorrow. The cancellation comes as a result of civil unrest after 3 Islamic militants were recently executed in that country.

The militants were convicted in connection with the Bali bombings in 2002. Prior to their execution, calls were made by the prisoners and other militant groups to avenge their deaths with more attacks on the Islamic country. Although security is always present in Jakarta and the city operates much like a military zone in places, the threat of violence or some kind of attack is always present.

While in Australia, Rihanna's tour was able to assess the situation in Indonesia and ultimately decided that it was not worth putting her or her 6,000 fans in jeopardy to see her sold out show in the nation's capital.

There is no word at this time whether the show will be rescheduled or how any ticket buyers will be compensated for the tickets already purchased. Obviously, this type of incident is going to limit, to a degree, the global reach of acts like Rihanna, who otherwise would have certainly generated quite a bit of buzz and album sales by appearing in Indonesia. The fact that she had a show scheduled there at all speaks to the strength of the global marketplace for U.S. entertainers, even in the current economic and political climate.