Religion

The Andinia Plan on Islam Channel
22 February 2021, 21:00

Islam Channel is an Islamic-focused, English language satellite television channel broadcasting a range of content to the Muslim community in the UK.

The Andinia Plan was a one-hour documentary programme which was broadcast on 21 February 2021. It examined a conspiracy theory known as the Andinia Plan that alleges there is a plan to establish a Jewish state in Patagonia, the southern region of South America governed by Argentina and Chile.

Ofcom received one complaint that the programme contained antisemitic statements and views that amounted to hate speech against Jewish people.

Ofcom Conclusion

The breaches of the Code resulting from the broadcast of this potentially very harmful and highly offensive antisemitic hate speech are serious.

We are therefore putting the Licensee on notice that we will consider these breaches for the imposition of a statutory sanction.

Indonesia's parliament has overhauled the country's criminal code to outlaw sex outside marriage and curtail free speech, in a dramatic setback to freedoms.

Passed with support from all political parties, the draconian legislation has shocked not only rights activists but also the country's booming tourism sector, which relies on a stream of visitors to its tropical islands.

Newspapers in Australia have labelled the legislation the Bali bonk ban as the law will apply to Indonesians and visiting foreigners.

Maulana Yusran, the deputy chief of Indonesia's tourism industry board, said:

The code was totally counterproductive and introduced just as the country was trying to recover from the pandemic. We deeply regret the government have closed their eyes.

Supporters of the new laws say that while sex outside marriage will be punishable by a year in jail and cohabitation by six months, charges can nominally be based only on police reports lodged by a spouse, parents or children. But Taufik Basari, a legislator of the NasDem party, said that if a tourist visiting Bali, for instance, had consensual sex with an Indonesian national, and it was reported to police by the Indonesian's parent or child, that tourist could be arrested.

There are fears the rules could have a severe impact on LGBTQ+ communities in Indonesia, where gay marriage is not acknowledged.

Joyland is a 2022 Pakistan drama by Saim Sadiq
Starring Rasti Farooq, Sarwat Gilani and Ali Junejo

As the happily patriarchal Rana family craves for the birth of a baby boy, the youngest of the Rana men secretly joins an erotic dance theatre and finds himself falling for a fiercely ambitious trans starlet. Their impossible love story slowly illuminates the entire Rana family's...

Alina Khan, who stars in Joyland, the first major Pakistani film to feature a trans actor in a lead role, said:

I've been very sad. There's nothing against Islam and I don't understand how Islam can get endangered by mere films.

Joyland, which is Pakistan's contender at the Oscars, was set to go on national release, but was banned following pressure from hardline Islamic groups who called the film repugnant.

Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, a senator in the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) party, called Joyland cultural terrorism and criticised the government for the shameless act of allowing its release:

 I condemn it and will use every legal step to stop Joyland's release. Glamourising transgenders in Pakistan, as well as their love affairs, is a direct attack on our beliefs.

Cancelling the film's licence, which puts its Oscars' contention in doubt, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, said:

Written complaints were received that the film contains highly objectionable material which do not conform with the social values and moral standards of our society and is clearly repugnant to the norms of 'decency and morality' as laid down in Section 9 of the Motion Picture Ordinance, 1979.

Joyland has been hailed on the festival circuit. It was the first Pakistani film to be selected as an official entry at Cannes in May, winning two festival awards and receiving a standing ovation in a packed Salle Debussy theatre.

Update: Unbanned after cuts

21st November 2022. See article from easterneye.biz

Pakistani film Joyland has been unbanned by the censor board of Pakistan after making several scenes were cut.

The full censor board has allowed the local screening of Joyland. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif formed a cabinet committee to look into the matter after some schools of thought had objected to the movie.

Update: Re-banned in Punjab

30th November 2022. See article from hrw.org

Less than 24 hours after the national government's decision to unban Joyland, the Punjab government blocked the film's release in the province.

The Punjab Information and Culture Department explained that the Punjab government decided to re-call Joyland in the wake of persistent complaints received from different quarters.

The Bishop of Birkenhead, Julie Conalty, is supporting pupils from Sandbach High School who are campaigning to prevent the sexualisation of school uniforms by the porn industry and well-known retailers.

Bishop Conalty became aware of their petition to ban school uniforms in sex shops and pornography through social media. More than 15,000 people have signed, prompting a government response.

A teacher at the school, Sarah Maile, said:

Our older students mentioned that once they'd moved into the sixth form, when they weren't wearing their school uniforms anymore . . . they were experiencing sexual harassment less.

The petition reads:

Ban school uniforms in sex shops and pornography

We urge the Government to make it illegal for school uniforms to be displayed and sold within sex shops to stop the sexualisation of children. We also think it is vital for pornography to ban displaying videos where school uniforms are worn as a costume.

It is disgusting that the sexualisation and fetishisation of children is apparently condoned by these establishments and companies. In the UK school uniforms are worn by most students until the age of 16.

We believe their sale in sex shops and use as costumers in pornography is glamorising and normalising sexual acts with children. This is capitalising off of the sexual exploitation of children and prioritising profit over the safety of millions of children. By allowing this to be legal it perpetuates a society in which people feel it is acceptable to sexualise children.

The government response notes:

The Government does not intend to take this specific action at this time but remains firmly committed to preventing the sexualisation of children through the robust measures that are already in place.

The Government is committed to keeping children safe from all forms of abuse and already has a range of robust offences to protect children from sexual exploitation and exposure to harmful material.

Although currently the sale of school uniform-like clothing does not fall within this bracket, there are a number of offences which can be considered to prosecute individuals involved in the advertisement for sale, distribution and/or importation of items such as child-like sex dolls. The offences include: the Customs Consolidation Act 1876, which prohibits the importation of indecent and obscene material; the Obscene Publications Act 1959, which prohibits the publishing of an obscene article; the Indecent Displays (Control) Act 1981, which prohibits the public display of indecent matter; and the Postal Services Act 2000, which prohibits the sending by post of indecent or obscene articles.

The Government encourages corporate responsibility from both manufacturers and retailers with regard to sexualised merchandise. Local Authorities ultimately have responsibility to ensure that the advertisement and sale of items and products do not contravene any establishments trading legislation.

Parents and consumers share concerns about the commercialisation and sexualisation of children, including the sale of novelty clothing products aimed at the adult market. We recognise that this is a highly subjective issue, intimately bound up with notions such as good and bad taste, personal preferences, and the ability to exercise choice. However, it is not for the UK Government to dictate the types of novelty clothing retailers can sell nor to comment on day-to-day commercial decisions by companies.

Thank God is a 2022 India comedy by Indra Kumar
Starring Rakul Preet Singh, Ajay Devgn and Sidharth Malhotra

An egoistic real estate broker in huge debts, meets with an accident. As he gains consciousness, he realizes that he is in heaven. God appears in front of him and informs him that he will have to play a GAME OF LIFE. If he manages to win, he will be sent back to earth and if he loses, he will be sent to hell.

Kuwait: Banned in September 2022

The film caused a little controversy in India as religious campaigners felt that it mocked the hindu religion and so filed a legal case claiming that the film hurt religious sentiments. It is reported that this religious mockery did not go down well with the Kuwait film censor who banned the film from a cinema release in Kuwait.

Six Gulf states have warned Netflix over content violating Islamic values. The states have threatened Netflix with legal action if it continues broadcasting content that contradicts Islam, while Saudi state media indicated that the offending material centred on shows depicting sexual minorities.

A statement issued jointly by the Saudi media regulator and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), headquartered in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, did not specifically identify material, referring only to content that contradicts Islamic and societal values. The statement said.

Regional authorities will follow up on the platform's compliance with the directives, and in the event that the infringing content continues to be broadcast, the necessary legal measures will be taken.

The Gulf Cooperation Council includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia , and the United Arab Emirates.

Turkish singer Gulsen has been arrested and accused of suupsedly inciting hatred over a joke she made about religious schools. In April, the singer joked a member of her band's perversion was due to him having attended one.

Despite the comments being old, they recently went viral online, drawing criticism from religious conservatives.

Gulsen, who is likened to a Turkish Madonna, had apologised on social media. Writing on Twitter and Instagram, the singer said that while she was defending freedom of expression with her joke between colleagues she apologised to everyone who was offended.

She is being held pending trial.

A Malaysian feminist has been charged with knowingly making and initiating the transmission of obscene communication after she uploaded a collage of vulva like flowers on her Twitter account.

Amira Nur Afiqah Agus Salim pleaded not guilty at the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur. She was released on bail and has a new hearing next month.

According to Yahoo News Malaysia, the vulva collage, posted in September 2021, was meant as a commentary regarding an ad campaign by Libresse, a popular feminine care brand in Malaysia. Libresse had launched a line of sanitary products featuring images of vulvas interpreted into flower motifs on the packaging.

Salim tweeted in response, Libresse uses flower as representation of vulva instead of this? and attached the collage, which the authorities consider a violation of the country's strict obscenity laws.

Religious organizations have also successfully objected to even the stylized, flower-like design that the tweet criticized. The Yadim Muslim Women's Council called the representation a misuse of an image of women's private parts and a dishonor to women.

The Libresse campaign was eventually cancelled due to the uproar.

Leena Manimekalai, an Indian film-maker based in Canada , has received thousands of threats of violence after the poster for her short film Kaali, which was aired in the Canadian city of Toronto at the weekend, went viral on social media.

A hashtag reading arrest Leena Manimekalai began trending. Two police cases -- one in the Indian capital, Delhi, and another in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh -- were filed against the director and others involved in the film with claims of a disrespectful depiction of a Hindu god and of supposedly hurting religious sentiments.

The Indian high commission in Canada said it had received complaints from members of the Hindu community over the poster and it urged Canadian authorities and the event organisers to withdraw all such provocative material.

Manimekalai wrote and directed the film as part of her graduate film studies at a Toronto university. In the piece, the goddess Kaali inhabits Manimekalai's body and wanders the city streets in a search for belonging. In a scene pictured on the film's poster she shares a cigarette with a homeless man while dressed as the goddess.

The Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, which hosted the screening of the film, issued an apology, saying the film and poster had inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities.

The Christian Institute has been reading a report by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) and has realised that the Christians will be first against the wall when the UK government empowers US internet Goliaths partnering with the easily offended to control what people are allowed to say.

The Christian Institute explains:

A report titled An Unsafe Bill , published by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), outlines the Online Safety Bill's impact on free speech, privacy and innovation

The Bill gives strong incentives for social media companies and search engines to restrict content which is legal but harmful to adults and empowers Government ministers to decide what this covers.

The IEA warns this will give the Secretary of State for Culture and watchdog Ofcom unprecedented powers to define and limit speech, with limited parliamentary or judicial oversight.

The report highlights that because tech companies could be fined up to ten per cent of their annual global turnover if they fail to uphold their new duties, platforms may use automated tools in a precautionary and censorious manner.

The briefing also warns that the Bill's free speech protections appear wholly inadequate, with the risk that those claiming distress will request the removal of speech with which they disagree.

Writing in The Times, its co-author Matthew Lesh called the Bill a recipe for automated over-removal of speech on an industrial scale, to ensure compliance and placate the most easily offended. He commented:

Is the government trying to out-compete Russia and China in online censorship?

 

An Unsafe Bill

29th June 2022. See full report [pdf] from iea.org.uk

Here is the summery of the quoted report.

An Unsafe Bill: How the Online Safety Bill threaten s free speech , innovation and privacy

By Matthew Lesh, Head of Public Policy, Institute of Economic Affairs, and Victoria Hewson , Head of Regulatory Affairs , Institute of Economic Affairs

Summary

• - The Online Safety Bill establishes a new regulatory regime for digital platforms intended to improve online safety.

• - The Bill raises significant issues for freedom of expression, privacy and innovation.

• - There is a lack of evidence to justify the legislation, with respect to both the alleged prevalence of what the Bill treats as ' harm ' and the link between the proposed measures and the desired objectives.

Freedom of expression

• - The duties in the Bill, in respect of illegal content and legal content that is harmful to adults, combine d with the threat of large fines and criminal liability, risks platforms using automated tools in a precautionary and censorious manner .

• - The Bill appears designed to discourage platforms from hosting speech that the Secretary of State considers to be harmf ul, even if that speech is legal. The Bill allows for the expansion of the category of ' legal but harmful ' content with limited parliamentary scrutiny .

• - The Secretary of State and Ofcom will have unprecedented powers to define and limit speech, with limited parliamentary or judicial oversight.

• - The introduction of age assurance requirements will force search engines and social media to withhold potentially harmful information by default, making it difficultforadults to access information without logging int o services, and entirely forbidding children from content even if it could be educationally valuable.

• - Some small to mid - sized overseas platforms could block access for UK users to limit their regulatory costs and risks, thereby reducing British users ' acce ss to online content .

• - Safeguards designed to protect free expression are comparatively weak and could backfire by requiring application in a ' consistent ' manner, leading to the removal of more content.

Privacy

• - The safety duties will lead platforms to profi le users and monitor their content and interactions including by using technologies mandated by Ofcom .

• - The inclusion of private messaging in the duties risks undermining encryption .

• - The child safety duties will infringe the privacy of adult users by requir ing them to verify their age, through an identity verification or age assurance process, to access content that is judged unsuitable for children.

• - The user empowerment duties will further necessitate many users verifying their identities to platforms.

Innovation

• - The Bill imposes byzantine requirements on businesses of all sizes. Platforms face large regulatory costs and criminal liability for violations, which could discourage investment and research and development in the United Kingdom.

• - The Bill ' s regulatory costs will be more burdensome for start - ups and small and medium - sized businesses, which lack the resources to invest in legal and regulatory compliance and automated systems, and therefore the Bill could entrench the market position of ' Big Tech ' companies.

• - The likely result of the additional regulatory and cost burdens on digital businesses will be the slower and more cautious introduction of new innovative products or features , and fewer companies entering the sector. This will lead to less competition and less incentive to innovate, with resulting losses to consumer welfare

The Guildford Diocesan Synod has submitted a motion to the General Synod, the Church of England's legislative body, seeking to prevent children and young people from online exposure to pornography. The General Synod, which takes place in York next month, will consider the motion.

In the papers published last week, the Rev Charleen Hollington, a member of the Leatherhead Deanery Synod, Guildford, wrote:

Access to pornography means that a distorted and harmful view of what constitutes normal sexual relations is being absorbed by each new generation of children and young people.

This is placing pressure on young boys and girls to conform to stereotypes of domination on the one hand and submission and degradation on the other, and is creating a wider culture of abusive attitudes towards girls and women.

A law requiring age verification for access to commercial porn sites was meant to come into effect in 2018, but it never did for reasons having to do with bureaucratic delay and then a changed approach by the Government. 'Increase awareness of harms of pornography'

Hollington also criticised the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport's Bill, saying:

If passed, the proposed legislation will go some way to addressing the problems. However, legislation introduced in 2018 which was designed to require age verification for access to commercial porn sites never came into effect.

Therefore, the need for the motion to be passed by General Synod now remains as strong as it has always been. The motion acknowledges the current problem, asks the Government to take action and recommends programmes to increase awareness of the harms of pornography.

The Lady Of Heaven is a 2021 UK action drama by Eli King
Starring Ray Fearon, Denise Black and Christopher Sciueref

The heart-wrenching journey of Lady Fatima, the daughter of the religious character Muhammad. Separated by 1400 years, an Iraqi child, in the midst of a war-torn country, learns the importance and power of patience. After losing his mother, the child finds himself in a new home, where a loving grandmother narrates the historical story of The Lady and how her suffering as the first victim of terror spun out of control into the 21st century.

Cineworld cinemas have cancelled all screenings of a film about the daughter of the religious character Muhammad after cinemas were picketed by Muslim activists.

Presumably fearing muslim violence, Cineworld said it took the decision to cancel all showings of The Lady of Heaven to ensure the safety of our staff and customers.

Vue Cinemas have cancelled some screenings but still seems to be showing the film in London on the south east.

The issue is that the film provides a visual representation of Muhammad, albeit CGI created, rather than being played by an actor.

A video circulating online showed the manager of Sheffield Cineworld telling protesters that Sunday night's screening had been cancelled, to cries of Allahu Akbar (God is great).

A screening in Bolton was cancelled after 100 protesters turned up at the local Cineworld branch. The chair of the Bolton Council of Mosques had urged the cancellation of the screening, claiming the film was underpinned with a sectarian ideology and is blasphemous in nature to the Muslim community.

5Pillars, a Muslim news site, tweeted a photo of what it said was 200 Muslims protesting against the film outside Cineworld in Broad Street, Birmingham on Sunday.

More than 117,000 people have signed a petition to try to get the film banned from all UK cinemas but in fact the film has already been passed 15 uncut by the BBFC, the UK film censor. The film has also been rated R by the MPA for screenings in the US.

Claire Fox, who sits in the House of Lords,  tweeted that the decision to cancel the screening showed the creep of extra-parliamentary blasphemy law was now censoring film. She wrote:

Same 'I Find that Offensive' cancel culture arguments now being used far beyond campus activism. Disastrous for the arts, dangerous for free speech, a lesson to those who argue identity politics are no threat to democracy.

Malik Shlibak, executive producer of the film, told the Guardian cinemas should stand up and defend their right to show films that people want to see:

I think cinemas are crumbling to the pressure, and taking these decisions to quell the noise. The production company had received dozens of messages from people who were trying to book tickets to see the film but not being able to.

This is an artistic endeavour talking about and elaborating on history and religion, which always has a plethora of different takes and interpretations. That's normal and healthy. We welcome this and we welcome people to express themselves, whether they're for or against the film.

What we don't support, and what we vehemently stand against, is what they're trying to do, which is to censor others and dictate what we can and cannot watch in UK cinemas.They have no right to do so and it's something very dangerous. The general population really need to be aware of this and stand up to this, because it is infringing and putting in danger their freedom of speech.

 

Offsite comment: The shameful censorship of The Lady of Heaven

 See article from spiked-online.com

 

Update: The BBFC responds to religious bullying in a statement

12th June 2022. See article from bbfc.co.uk

We classify content in line with our published Classification Guidelines, which are the result of wide-scale consultations with thousands of people from across the UK, extensive research, and more than 100 years of experience. They are updated every four to five years to ensure that our standards continue to reflect the expectations and values of people across the country.

We classified The Lady Of Heaven 15 for strong bloody violence, gory images, and threat. We provide content advice -- which we call 'ratings info' -- on our website and app for every film we classify, so that audiences can decide for themselves whether a film will be suitable for them or their families. You can review the ratings info for The Lady Of Heaven here.

On occasion, we will consider some content unsuitable for classification, in line with the objective of preventing non-trivial harm risks to potential viewers and, through their behaviour, to society. As an accountable and transparent organisation, this decision and the reasons for it will be communicated to the distributor and publicly. However, there is nothing in The Lady Of Heaven that exceeds our Classification Guidelines at 15 or deems it unsuitable for classification.

Filmmakers are free to explore historical or controversial themes and events within their films. The BBFC's role is to ensure the content is classified appropriately based on our guidelines, in order to protect children and other vulnerable groups from potential harm and to empower consumers to make informed viewing decisions.

 

Update: The Government is also unimpressed by religious bullying and sacks an organiser of the protests

12th June 2022. See article from bbfc.co.uk

An imam has been dismissed as a government adviser after backing calls for The Lady of Heaven to be banned. Qari Asim was removed from his role as an Islamophobia consultant after his role in organising protests against the film. Asim was said to have advertised a protest in Leeds, with details of its timing and location.

Supporting the campaign to limit free expression precluded him from continuing, the government said. Asim, imam of the Makkah Masjid mosque in Leeds, was told his appointment as deputy chair of the government's Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group had to end in a letter from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing & Communities. It said:

Your recent support for a campaign to limit free expression - a campaign which has itself encouraged communal tensions - means it is no longer appropriate for you to continue your work with government in roles designed to promote community harmony.

He was told his actions were a clear effort to restrict artistic expression and that the campaign had led to street protests which have fomented religious hatred. The government said that on Monday Asim had posted on Facebook:

We have been working with many brothers and Imams across the country to liaise with the cinemas. Some Imams have taken a view to protest and others are in dialogue with the cinemas trying to resolve the situation.

The letter continued:

Resolving the situation, as you made clear, meant cancelling screenings. You wrote that in some places we have been successful and those cinemas will no longer be showing the movie.

We were disappointed to see that you failed to condemn some of the protests complicit in these behaviours.

 

Offiste Comment: Film bans are less about offence, more community leaders showing who's boss

10th June 2022. See article from theguardian.com by Kenan Malik

Debates about the giving of offence are rarely about offence. They are mostly about gatekeeping: that is, debates over who has the right to police communities and determine what can be said about a community and by a community.

The Lady of Heaven has already had a five-week run in the US without protest. In Britain, however, the film was seen as an opportunity for certain leaders and organisations to flex their muscles. Much of the campaign for its banning has been organised by the Muslim news website 5Pillars, its editor Roshan Muhammed Salih describing the film as shocking and disgusting and as pure, unadulterated, sectarian filth. Salih has long been a propagandist for both the Iranian regime (he was head of news for Press TV, Tehran's English language broadcast service) and the Taliban.

See full article from theguardian.com by Kenan Malik

 

Update: Muslim Action Forum calls on the BBFC to ban the Lady of Heaven

17th June 2022. See article. From 5pillarsuk.com

The Muslim Action Forum is a collective campaign group. It has called on muslims to boycott cinema chains that have shown The Lady of Heaven and has witten a letter to the BBFC calling for a ban of the film. The letter to the BBFC reads:

Dear Sir,

We write to you regarding the film Lady of Heaven directed by Eli King, that was released in Britain on 3rd June 2022 in Vue Cinemas, Cineworld and Showcase. It has been written by Yasir Al-Habib who is a prominent, extreme Shi'a cleric denounced by Muslims of all denominations including Shia. He was imprisoned in Kuwait for his hate speech, and also deported out of Iran -- denounced by them as a mad man and an illiterate fool.

The film is blasphemous, historically inaccurate, and blatantly anti-Muslim, designed to cause outrage and hatred between communities, especially between Shias and Sunnis. It has been a financial flop in the USA and in the UK as audiences have realised that it is nothing but a cheap money-making exercise at the expense of others. This is akin to showing a sectarian film about the issues in Northern Ireland where the leaders of one side are depicted as inherently evil along with their families. On this occasion the beliefs of over two billion Muslims have been deeply offended. Showcase Cinemas. Editorial credit: Amani A / Shutterstock.com

The Public Order Act 1986, quoted in your guidelines, makes it illegal to show abusive and insulting images designed to stir up racial or religious hatred. This film has been designed to create just that result. We already know after the Satanic Verses and Charlie Hebdo experiences, that it is deeply offensive to the two billion Muslims in this world to depict the image of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who is respected and revered by each and every one of us. The film offends us as it not only depicts our beloved Prophet but also portrays members of his blessed household. Whilst these noble people dedicated their whole lives in helping the sick and needy, the film depicts some of them as evil and as terrorists.

This film has been withdrawn from most cinemas after Muslims demonstrated their opposition to it and were prepared to continue to peacefully demonstrate until the film was withdrawn. We are now calling upon British Muslims to boycott all the guilty cinema chains.

The BBFC should not have given licence in the first instance, and we request to review your decision in regards this film. We are happy to assist you in any way possible in this regard, if required.

Shoaib Malik
National Co-ordinator
On behalf of Muslim Action Forum

The Lady Of Heaven is a 2021 UK action drama by Eli King
Starring Ray Fearon, Denise Black and Christopher Sciueref

The heart-wrenching journey of Lady Fatima, the daughter of the religious character Muhammad. Separated by 1400 years, an Iraqi child, in the midst of a war-torn country, learns the importance and power of patience. After losing his mother, the child finds himself in a new home, where a loving grandmother narrates the historical story of The Lady and how her suffering as the first victim of terror spun out of control into the 21st century.

Moroccan film censors have banned the British film Lady of Heaven, after it was condemned by the country's religious council.

The Supreme Ulema Council said the movie was a flagrant falsification of the established facts of Islam. The council accused the film of loathsome partiality and accused the filmmakers of seeking fame and sensationalism and hurting the feelings of Muslims and stirring up religious sensitivities.

The BBC's Religion Editor, Aleem Maqbool, says the criticism centres on the the way the Shia Muslim film-maker and cleric, Yasser Al-Habib, has portrayed prominent revered figures in early Sunni Islam, implying that there are comparisons between their actions with those of the Islamic State group in Iraq.

There have been protests against the film in the UK. Egypt, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq have also denounced it.

The Kashmir Files is a 2022 India historical thriller by Vivek Agnihotri
Starring Anupam Kher, Mithun Chakraborty and Darshan Kumaar

The Kashmir Files is a story, based on video interviews of the first generation victims of the Genocide of Kashmiri Pandit Community In 1990.

The Indian hit film The Kashmir Files has been banned in Singapore by the country's InfoComm Media Development Authority, on the grounds that it could supposedly disturb religious harmony.

The IMDA said that it had consulted with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and the Ministry of Home Affairs, and that they together found the film to have exceeded the Film Classification Guidelines for its provocative and one-sided portrayal of Muslims and the depictions of Hindus being persecuted in the on-going conflict in Kashmir saying:

These representations have the potential to cause enmity between different communities and disrupt social cohesion and religious harmony in Singapore's multi-racial and multi-religious society.

The film was also briefly banned by the UAE film censors but the decision was reversed and the film was released uncut.

The New Zealand film censor initially passed the film R16 but this was uprated to R18 in response to muslim 'concerns'.

Finland's top prosecutor has said she will appeal a decision by a court that ruled against her hate speech allegation against a politician for posting anti-gay Bible verses on Twitter.

The Prosecutor General argued that Paivi Räsänen, a member of parliament, broke Finland's hate speech laws by using Christian theology in a public debate on radio and in tweets. In a tweet to the leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, Räsänen posted a passage from Romans (1:24-27) saying:

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

Räsänen was accused of criticizing Finland's state church hosting an LGBT event and writing a booklet titled Male and Female He Created Them.

After the prosecutor announced she would appeal the ruling, Räsänen said:

The prosecutor's decision to appeal the acquittal verdict may lead to the case going all the way to the Supreme Court, giving the possibility of securing precedent protecting freedom of speech and religion for all Finnish people. Also I am happy that this decision will lead to the discussion of the teaching of the Bible continuing in Finnish society. I am ready to defend freedom of speech and religion in all necessary courts, and as far as the European Court of Human rights.

Benedetta is a 2021 France/Belgium/Netherlands historical romance by Paul Verhoeven
Starring Virginie Efira, Charlotte Rampling and Daphne Patakia  

A 17th-century nun in Italy suffers from disturbing religious and erotic visions. She is assisted by a companion, and the relationship between the two women develops into a romantic love affair.

A lesbian nun thriller that features a sex scene that has been slammed by Catholic groups who have claimed it as appalling and blasphemous. The film was released on Good Friday,

The film, Benedetta, directed by Paul Verhoeven, is based upon a real-life story of a 17th century nun called Benedetta Carlini who is suffering from from disturbing religious and erotic visions.

A scene which features a statue of Virgin Mary being used as a sex toy has been particularly slammed by Catholics. A spokesman for the Irish Society for Christian Civilisation, Damien Murphy said:

This movie is a fraud and nothing more than a blatant attack on the Catholic faith. There is no way that a director would depict Mohammed acting in a sexual manner. There is not one director in Hollywood or Europe who would dare mock Mohammed or the Jewish faith -- it just wouldn't happen.

The Irish Society for Christian Civilisation have launched a petition calling for the film not to be released, which has drawn more than 13,000 petitions. The petition reads:

I strongly oppose and condemn your distribution and promotion of Paul Verhoeven's film Benedetta. It offends God, and countless Catholics all over the world. This immoral film blasphemously features several Jesus-on-nun intense 'make outs', a statuette of Mary Most Holy used as a sex-toy and voyeuristic lesbian nuns pornography.

The Irish Film Classification Office rated the film 18 uncut for strong sex and violence including scenes of torture and sexual assault.

The film is being release MPA Unrated in the US.

Meanwhile the BBFC has also rated the film 18 uncut, but for sexual violence, strong sex, nudity, bloody violence:

• 2022 MUBI R0 4K Blu-ray at UK Amazon #ad released on 1st August 2022
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The BBFC have additionally commented:

There are scenes of strong sex, including cunnilingus, masturbation and implied penetration with a wooden sex toy. Such scenes also contain sexualised breast, buttock and genital nudity. In one sequence, a woman masturbates in front of her lover, who is reluctant to engage in sexual acts, ultimately refusing to touch her. sexual violence and sexual threat

A woman is tortured using genital mutilation; it is implied that a device is used to penetrate her, but this is not shown in strong detail. In another sequence, a man attempts to rape a woman while she is restrained by others, but violence puts an end to the sexual threat.

Jimmy Carr: His Dark Material is a 2021 UK comedy by Brian Klein, Amanda Baker
Starring Jimmy Carr

Jimmy Carr finds humour in the darkest of places in this stand-up comedy special. This special features Jimmy's trademark dry, sardonic wit and includes some jokes which Jimmy calls "career enders".

The programme was passed 18 uncut by the BBFC with a trigger warning for sexual violence references, discrimination, language.

Now comedian Jimmy Carr has sparked 'outrage' for a routine about the Holocaust in his latest Netflix stand-up special.

The programme, titled His Dark Material , was released on the streaming platform on Christmas Day but the clip about the Holocaust came to light more widely when it was shared on social media.

The comedian, who introduced his show as being a career ender and warned it contained terrible things, said a positive of the Holocaust was that thousands of Gypsies were murdered. The comments were greeted with applause and laughter from the audience.

Between 200,000 and 500,000 Roma and Sinti people were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators, according to the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. The charity's chief executive Olivia Marks-Woldman said:

We are absolutely appalled at Jimmy Carr's comment about persecution suffered by Roma and Sinti people under Nazi oppression, and horrified that gales of laughter followed his remarks.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said the comments were abhorrent and they just shouldn't be on television. Dorries suggested the government could legislate to stop comedy people find offensive being shown on streaming platforms. She told the BBC:

We're already looking at future legislation to bring into scope those sort of comments

Asked about a previous Tweet where she said left-wing snowflakes are killing comedy, Ms Dorries replied: Well, that's not comedy.

SNP MP Martin Docherty-Hughes, who is co-chairman of the House of Commons All Party Parliamentary Group for Gypsies, Travellers and Roma, wrote on Twitter that he was utterly speechless at this disregard for the horror of the holocaust and its impact on the Gypsy community of Europe.

Netflix declined to comment. Carr has also not commented.

 

Offsite Comment: Jimmy Carr must be free to say the unsayable

9th February 2022. See article from spiked-online.com by Simon Evans

The government has no business decreeing what is funny.

Rajan Zed is a perennial whinger who complains about hindu imagery being used outside of a religious context.

He has taken offence at the ballet La Bayadère for its irreverent treatment of religion in general and hinduism in particular.

The ballet seems to be on world tour with Zed whingeing at each venue that stages it. Zed spoke of performances by the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet claiming that:

This deeply problematic ballet was just a blatant belittling of a rich civilization and exhibited 19th-century orientalist attitudes.

Zed further said that Norwegian National Ballet should have shown some maturity before selecting a ballet like La Bayadère (The Temple Dancer) displaying Western caricaturing of Eastern heritage and abetting ethnic stereotyping. He added:

It was highly irresponsible for Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, whose strategy stated204We will create and present operas and ballets which make an impact; to choose such a ballet which had been blamed for patronizing flawed mishmash of orientalist stereotypes, dehumanizing cultural portrayal and misrepresentation, offensive and degrading elements, needless appropriation of cultural motifs, essentialism, shallow exoticism, caricaturing, etc. Norwegian National Opera & Ballet could do better than this to serve its diverse stakeholders.

The Norwegian Ministry of Culture and Equality and its Minister Anette Trettebergstuen should also take its areas of responsibility204culture, equality and discrimination204more seriously, and have better understanding of the feelings of others to do the job more effectively.

Now Norwegian National Opera & Ballet has refused to cancel its production and Zed is not happy:

We plan to appeal to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre as it is simply unfair, unethical and inappropriate to spend taxpayer's money on caricaturing other culture.