This is a movie Singaporeans won’t see: Kashmir Files, Indian drama about the flight of members of the Hindu elite from Kashmir. It has been massively promoted by the government of President Narendra Modi, who has constantly stigmatized the Muslim minority in his country and in this region where inter-religious tensions are high.
With our correspondent in the region, Gabrielle Marshals
Accused of lacking nuance, inaccuracies and stirring up hatred, Kashmir Files has already been banned for minors in New Zealand. This week, it’s the turn of Singapore to announce that he will not authorize the screening of this film evoking the flight of members of the Hindu elite from Kashmir, a region where inter-religious tensions are strong between Hindus and the Muslim minority.
” Provocative and one-sided storytelling “who could” disrupt religious harmony “. It is in these terms that the Government of Singapore has described Kashmir Fileswhich will therefore not be available in its dark rooms.
The ban is hardly surprising for this small, multi-ethnic country where the law states that ” any material denigrating the racial or religious communities of Singapore will be refused broadcast “.
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With a population practicing sometimes Buddhism, Islam, Christianity or Hinduism, Singapore has always ensured that it wants to rhyme diversity with respect, for, as its anthem says ” moving forward together towards happiness “.
The banning of this film therefore does not move many people in Singapore, unlike India, where its director himself has called the small Southeast Asian state the most retrograde censor.
Malaysia, neighboring Singapore, has not yet expressed itself, but the subject of Kashmir does not leave anyone indifferent in this predominantly Muslim country. In 2019, the Malaysian Prime Minister even denounced Narendra Modi’s policy at the UN forum, thus generating a boycott of Malaysian palm oil in India.
A painful action for the country’s economy but which had not however led its Prime Minister to reconsider his statements.
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