One Official Wants Ban Reconsidered : Rebukes for Malaysia Over 'Schindler's List' 
International Herald Tribune
March 24, 1994
Michael Richardson 

Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad of Malaysia was accused Wednesday of "long-standing anti- Semitism" following a decision to ban the Oscar-winning Holocaust film "Schindler's List" on the grounds that it was Jewish propaganda.

Appearing to defend the decision by the censorship board, Mr. Mahathir said that Malaysia had the right to ban any movie. "There's no need to protest," he said.

But the prime minister's deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, said that the board's reported reasons for rejecting the film were unacceptable and that he was sure the cabinet would review the ban.

"Personally, I would like to see the movie here," he said.

In condemning Malaysia's ban, the Simon Wiesenthal Center said in Los Angeles: "We are saddened but not surprised by this deplorable decision, which is in keeping with the long-standing anti-Semitism expressed by the prime minister of the country." The organization, which tracks down Nazi war criminals, was founded by Simon Wiesenthal.

According to a translation of a letter from the Malaysian censors - provided by the London-based international marketing consultant for Steven Spielberg, the American who directed "Schindler's List" - the film was propaganda that showed the Jewish victims as "stout-hearted" and "intelligent" while depicting the Nazis as brutal and cruel.

The story reflected the "virtues of a certain race only," the letter said. "It seems the illustration is propaganda with the purpose of asking for sympathy, as well as to tarnish the other race."

But the deputy prime minister characterized the Nazis as "brutal and cruel," and said that those who had suffered under them, "be it Jews or non-Jews, were victims and all sympathies should be with them."

Analysts said that if the Malaysian cabinet failed to repudiate the censor's reasoning, it would prompt many countries to conclude that Malaysia adopted double standards in its attitude to Jews and non- Jews. Islam is the official religion of Malaysia, although the country's constitution guarantees freedom of worship.

Mr. Mahathir, who as home minister is directly in charge of the censorship board, denied he was anti-Semitic. In a local television interview, he said that what he opposed was "Zionist expansion" and "the conquest of Arab territories by Zionists."

Malaysia has no diplomatic ties with Israel and is a strong supporter of Palestinian self-rule in the occupied Gaza Strip and West Bank. Mr. Mahathir frequently censures Western nations for having failed to support Muslims in Palestine and Bosnia.

The decision by Malaysia to ban the film also drew a rebuke from an Australian Jewish organization. Colin Rubenstein, editorial chairman for Australian Israel Publications, said the ban showed "deep insensitivity, if not antipathy, toward Jews."

In 1984, a New York Philharmonic tour in Malaysia was canceled because the orchestra planned to perform a piece written by Ernest Bloc, a Jewish composer.

The censors also objected to scenes of "cruelty, brutality and inhuman torturing and killing," and said they would require 25 cuts to the film.

The film's local distributors said that Mr. Spielberg had given instructions to withdraw the film if the Malaysian authorities wanted parts of it censored.

The film won seven Oscars, including those for best picture and best director, at the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on Monday.

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