As the furore over the film ‘ The New Village ’ rages on, a PKR MP has spoken out against the banning of any work of art - be it ‘ The New Village ’ or another controversial historical film, ‘ Tanda Putera ’.

NONE “In principle, I object to the banning of all works of art, movies or books, as it is against freedom of speech and freedom of expression.

“I express regret that conservative views from both sides of the political divide have dominated this debate and turned it into partisan politics,” Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin ( left ) said in a statement.

He added that Malaysians are “mature enough to judge for themselves” and that no one, including the authorities, should decide for them what they can or cannot watch or read.

As such, he said, both films ‘ The New Village ’ and ‘ Tanda Putera’ should be screened as scheduled during the Independence month of August, on Aug 22 and 29 respectively.

“ NONE The Merdeka period is the best time to reflect on the history of Malaysia and both movies can be a source of such reflections,” he said.

Although both films were cleared by the censors, ‘ The New Village ’ was recently recalled for review following claims including from Umno Youth that it “glorifies communism”.

‘ Tanda Putera ’, meanwhile, had its screening postponed for several months following outcry, including from the DAP, who argue that it wrongly depicts the May 13, 1969 riots to scapegoat some quarters of society.

‘Malaysia needs more films and books’

Sim argued that modern history has shown that free speech, free press and freedom of intellectual pursuits can transform society for the better.

This, he said, is seen through the Renaissance age, the 1920s Chinese New Culture Movement and the Islamic Golden Age where Baghdad became the intellectual and cultural centre of the world.

NONE “Malaysian society needs more enlightenment from intellectual and cultural pursuits in the form of movies and books,” he said.

He added that while he has not watched either of the controversial films and cannot attest to their intellectual value, he believes that both cannot be denied space to explore Malaysian history.

“After all, there is a vacuum of serious historical movie production in this country,” he said.

Whether the depictions are historically accurate or biased, he said, should be left to historians to comment on and for the public to judge for themselves.