Charging 'Mentega Terbang' filmmakers excessive and archaic: NGO

The Freedom Film Network (FFN) has railed against the criminal charges filed against the director and producer of “Mentega Terbang”, calling it excessive, disproportionate, and archaic.

In a statement tonight, the group said that there was no evidence of a continued public outcry and it called on the government to immediately and unconditionally drop the charges against director Mohd Khairianwar Jailani and producer Tan Meng Kheng.

“FFN strongly condemns the continued harassment of the filmmakers, who were charged with deliberately wounding the religious feelings of others under Section 298 of the Penal Code. 

“The charge carries a punishment of up to one year’s imprisonment or a fine, or both. This comes after their movie, ‘Mentega Terbang’ was banned by the Home Ministry in September 2023 and taken down from the streaming platform Viu in March 2023,” said FFN.

Khairianwar, 31, is accused of committing the offence as director and scriptwriter of the movie on Feb 26 last year, while Tan, who is also a teacher, was alleged to have committed the offence in his capacity as producer of the controversial film on the same date.

‘Why only films and filmmakers punished?’

FFN said that criminalising filmmakers for a fictional film, especially one inspired by lived experiences of processing grief, is excessive and disproportionate. 

“There is no evidence of continued public outcry and the movie was banned in September 2023. The government’s reaction overemphasises the role of film in influencing people. 

“Parents, the home environment, and teachers play a more important role than film in shaping a person’s worldview. However, films and filmmakers seem to be the only ones punished and criminalised for their perceived negative influences on social values.

“This puts an unfair responsibility and burden on filmmakers to be the moral compass of the nation,” it added.

The government’s approach of banning the film and now criminalising the filmmakers is an archaic form of content control, FFN said, maintaining that in today’s digital age where audiences are exposed to all kinds of content, it is impossible to truly ban any media.

“To build religious harmony we need open communication, dialogue, and safe spaces to share different perspectives to understand each other. In our experience, ‘Mentega Terbang’ is an excellent tool to foster such discussions. 

“The audiences we spoke to said they understood and appreciated other faiths better after watching the movie and could relate to the main character’s experiences. However, such positive experiences with the film are not taken into account by the authorities.

“It is more productive for nation-building to empower citizens with the skills to process, navigate, and share this content rationally and responsibly. This is especially important in a multicultural and religious society like Malaysia. Shutting down any conversations around this movie does not allow us to grow these skills,” it said.

Censorship harms local film industry

The group warned that the move would harm the local film industry. 

“The international acclaim of films like ‘Tiger Stripes’, ‘Abang Adik’, ‘Maryam Pagi Ke Malam’, and ‘Pendatang’ have created interest in Malaysia as a place for new and interesting content. 

“This has the potential to bring much-needed investment into our film industry. 

“However, today’s charges send the signal that filmmakers are not protected in Malaysia and that filmmaking is actually a dangerous profession. This will have the knock-on effect of scaring away investors from the industry,” said FFN.

“We call upon the government to immediately and unconditionally drop the charges against the duo. 

“We also urge the Madani government to repeal and amend provisions in the Film Censorship Act, Communications and Multimedia Act, and the Penal code such as Section 298, and Section 505(b) that criminalise the constitutional right to free expression. 

“If Malaysia is truly to be the civilised and inclusive society imagined in the Malaysia Madani vision, then we need more stories, not more censorship,” FFN said.

COMMENT | 'Mentega Terbang': Drop charges against filmmakers

'Mentega Terbang' director and producer charged

Mentega Terbang: Groups accuse govt of silencing artistic freedom

Mentega Terbang director, producer to be charged Wednesday

Anwar betrayed reform promises to hold his coalition together - HRW

'Mentega Terbang': Director seeks court order to quash film ban