Jesus cartoon police row in Singapore
-16/06/06
In a case which is causing alarm among
Jesus cartoon police row in Singapore
-16/06/06
In a case which is causing alarm among free speech campaigners, a 21-year-old Singaporean man who has posted caricatures of Jesus on his website faces police investigations after public complaints that they are offensive.
The police say that they are looking into the matter, and warn that there are tough penalties in Singapore ñ a traditionally conservative and controlled society ñ for inciting racial or religious hatred.
The government recently banned under-16s from watching the Da Vinci Code movie, and last year two ethnic Chinese men were jailed for anti-Muslim weblogs.
One of the images depicts Jesus as a zombie biting a boy’s head. The young man, whose identity is being kept anonymous, is reportedly puzzled by the reaction.
According to the Straits Times, he declared: ìI never thought anyone would complain to the police because the pictures were not insidious.î
Cartoon art is common on the web, with monsters and zombies being a popular theme and famous characters from history, celebrity and fantasy fiction often utilised or modified.
The police statement said: ìIt is a serious offence for any person to distribute or reproduce any seditious publication which may cause feelings of ill-will and hostility between different races or classes of the population of Singapore.î
Offenders are potentially liable to imprisonment for up to three years or a fine not more than 5,000 Singapore dollars, or both.
The UK Christian think tank Ekklesia, which criticised campaigners seeking a ban on Jerry Springer The Opera in the UK, says that civil-religious movements for censorship are a growing phenomenon ñ and that they are bad for society and for the health of religion too.
Co-director Simon Barrow, in an article published this week entitled Restoring our faith in free speech, says that ìnon-coercive public space is essential if communal differences are not to end up being deadly. Faith communities should embrace this truth. But they must also recognise that it has a cost, the willingness to face offence.î
Meanwhile, Lee Hsien Loong, Singaporeís Prime Minister, says the government will act against anyone who threatens racial and religious harmony, by whatever medium.
Prosecutions are still possible under the countryís Sedition Act, a colonial-era law used by the former British rulers to fight left-wing opponents.
The wealthy Southeast Asian city-state gained independence in 1965 and was substantially shaped by the authoritarian rule of first minister Lee Kuan Yew.
[Also on Ekklesia: Christian row about Jerry Springer opera rages on; Get a life over Springer, say Christians; Jesus versus Jerry – the Simon Barrow column; Sadness and dismay at actions of religious campaigners; BBC cleared over Springer Opera; Call for Christian rethink over religious hatred; Calls for South Park to be censored over religious content; Arab politicians call for UN ban on religious slander; Church leaders urge dialogue with Muslims following cartoon row; Christian peacemakers told to keep low profile following anti-Muslim cartoons; US fundamentalist news service publishes cartoons of Muhammad; Danish Christian express regret to Muslims; Muslims call for level playing field]
Jesus cartoon police row in Singapore
-16/06/06
In a case which is causing alarm among free speech campaigners, a 21-year-old Singaporean man who has posted caricatures of Jesus on his website faces police investigations after public complaints that they are offensive.
The police say that they are looking into the matter, and warn that there are tough penalties in Singapore ñ a traditionally conservative and controlled society ñ for inciting racial or religious hatred.
The government recently banned under-16s from watching the Da Vinci Code movie, and last year two ethnic Chinese men were jailed for anti-Muslim weblogs.
One of the images depicts Jesus as a zombie biting a boy’s head. The young man, whose identity is being kept anonymous, is reportedly puzzled by the reaction.
According to the Straits Times, he declared: ìI never thought anyone would complain to the police because the pictures were not insidious.î
Cartoon art is common on the web, with monsters and zombies being a popular theme and famous characters from history, celebrity and fantasy fiction often utilised or modified.
The police statement said: ìIt is a serious offence for any person to distribute or reproduce any seditious publication which may cause feelings of ill-will and hostility between different races or classes of the population of Singapore.î
Offenders are potentially liable to imprisonment for up to three years or a fine not more than 5,000 Singapore dollars, or both.
The UK Christian think tank Ekklesia, which criticised campaigners seeking a ban on Jerry Springer The Opera in the UK, says that civil-religious movements for censorship are a growing phenomenon ñ and that they are bad for society and for the health of religion too.
Co-director Simon Barrow, in an article published this week entitled Restoring our faith in free speech, says that ìnon-coercive public space is essential if communal differences are not to end up being deadly. Faith communities should embrace this truth. But they must also recognise that it has a cost, the willingness to face offence.î
Meanwhile, Lee Hsien Loong, Singaporeís Prime Minister, says the government will act against anyone who threatens racial and religious harmony, by whatever medium.
Prosecutions are still possible under the countryís Sedition Act, a colonial-era law used by the former British rulers to fight left-wing opponents.
The wealthy Southeast Asian city-state gained independence in 1965 and was substantially shaped by the authoritarian rule of first minister Lee Kuan Yew.
[Also on Ekklesia: Christian row about Jerry Springer opera rages on; Get a life over Springer, say Christians; Jesus versus Jerry – the Simon Barrow column; Sadness and dismay at actions of religious campaigners; BBC cleared over Springer Opera; Call for Christian rethink over religious hatred; Calls for South Park to be censored over religious content; Arab politicians call for UN ban on religious slander; Church leaders urge dialogue with Muslims following cartoon row; Christian peacemakers told to keep low profile following anti-Muslim cartoons; US fundamentalist news service publishes cartoons of Muhammad; Danish Christian express regret to Muslims; Muslims call for level playing field]