Malaysian Film Censors: Gay Characters Must Repent Or Suffer1 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe Malaysian Film Censorship Board has approved one of the country’s first explicitly gay films – but has insisted on an unusual catch in order for it to get to theaters.
Censors insisted that the gay characters must either repent or come to a bad end during the course of the film.
Mohammad Hussain, chairman of the Film Censorship Board, said in an interview that, under new guidelines released in March, films dealing with homosexuality would be dealt with on a “case-by-case basis,” although the theme was not encouraged. Sodomy, even consensual, is a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison in Malaysia.
Mr. Mohammad said there must be some “good intention” on the part of the filmmaker to show people that homosexuality is “something that’s not normal – at least in our culture.”
