Malaysian Home Ministry not satisfied with The Star's explanation on controversial picture of Erykah Badu

The controversial Erykah Badu picture which was published by The Malaysian newspaper, The Star, which angered Muslims Malaysians, prompting the Malaysian government to cancel her concert.

And now the latest news on the controversy.

The Malaysian Home Ministry is not satisfied with the explanation from The Star over the picture of Erykah Badu with tattoos of the word "Allah" in Arabic on her body.



In a statement Wednesday, 7th March 2012, the newspaper was directed to submit to the ministry its recommendations for sterner action to ensure the mistakes did not recur and to serve as a deterrent in the future.

"The Ministry wishes to advise The Star and all media organisations to take preventive, corrective and informative action to prevent the publication of content that may touch on the country's multi-racial and multi-religious sensitivities," it said.

The Star has suspended two editors over the publication of a photograph showing the American singer with body art with the word Allah in Arabic.

On Feb 28, 2012, the newspaper received a show-cause letter from the Ministry, giving it seven days to reply.

The Star issued an apology via its online news portal and Twitter the same day. The newspaper's managing editor, chief news editor and senior editor were also called up by the ministry to explain the use of the photograph.

The newspaper also published another apology in its print version, saying the photograph was inadvertently published in Star2.

The Star, in its apology, said it deeply regretted any offence it caused to Muslims.

As a result of this fiasco, the scheduled Erykah Badu concert in Kuala Lumpur was cancelled, much to the dismay of he fans in Malaysia.

The organiser of the concert, clearly angered by the Star, is reportedly suing the newspaper for causing the cancellation of the concert.

Erykah Badu sad but not angry over Malaysian ban

Grammy Award winning American soul singer, Erykah Badu said Wednesday, 29 February 2012, she holds no grudge against Malaysia's government for barring her from performing after a photograph of her body art offended some Muslims.

More than 1,500 people had bought tickets to watch the Grammy-winning American singer at a Kuala Lumpur auditorium on Wednesday, 29th February 2012, but Malaysia's information minister announced on the eve of the concert that it could not proceed because a promotional photo of Badu with the Arabic word for Allah painted on her bare shoulders was "an insult to Islam."

"It's sad, because we traveled a long way," Badu told a news conference. "But I'm totally understanding of (the minister's) protection of the laws and its people. He doesn't want anything to happen. I'm good with that."

The photograph ignited criticism from some politicians and religious groups in Muslim-majority Malaysia after a newspaper published it Monday, 27th February 2012, in a feature to promote Badu's show. The daily has since apologized for what it called an "oversight" that led to the photo's publication.

Badu, 41, said the photo was inspired by images from "The Holy Mountain," a 1973 surrealist movie by Chilean-French filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky.

"I think art is often misunderstood in the realm of religion, and it's OK," she said. "In America, it's a lot different. Art is also misunderstood but it is not such a harsh gesture to promote the names of God. I am learning and understanding about Islam in other countries more as we travel."

Malaysian Information Minister Rais Yatim said Tuesday, 28 February 2012 that the controversy surrounding Badu's photo "could jeopardize national security and cause a negative impact to the government's image."

Public reaction to the concert ban has been divided. On Twitter, many Malaysians, including Muslims, accused the government of intolerance, but others praised authorities for being firm about defending religious principles.

Badu said she would "absolutely" welcome another chance to perform in Malaysia someday. She is scheduled to sing at a jazz festival this weekend in Jakarta, the capital of neighboring Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

The Star sudah beberapa kali melakukan kesilapan, adakah editornya buta huruf??

Akhbar harian The Star adalah akhbar paling laris di Malaysia dengan purata 300,000 naskah dijual setiap hari di seluruh Malaysia.

Akhbar berbahasa Inggeris itu sudah lama berada di pasaran, beroperasi sejak September 1971 dan kini dimiliki parti MCA, komponen BN.

Namun editor bahagian hiburan dan majalahnya seolah olah buta huruf, buta warna, buta hati kerana menyiarkan artikel yang membuta tuli, tidak sensitif dengan agama lain, sehingga menimbulkan kemarahan pelbagai pihak.



Ogos 2011, The Star terpaksa meminta maaf kerana kekhilafan menyiarkan artikel mengenai juadah berbuka puasa di bulan Ramadhan yang turut mengandungi sebuah menu "pork" atau daging babi yang sememangnya haram dalam Islam.

Justeru, The Star terpaksa meminta maaf.



Minggu ini, The Star sekali lagi terpaksa meminta maaf kerana menyiarkan gambar penyanyi soul Amerika Syarikat Erykah Badu, memaparkan tatoo kalimah Allah pada badannya. Penyiaran gambar itu membangkitkan kemarahan umat Islam di Malaysia dan sekaligus konsert Erykah Badu di Kuala Lumpur pada Rabu, 28 Februari 2012 terpaksa dibatalkan atas sebab keselamatan.

Adakah The Star akan meminta maaf lagi selepas ini?

Sudahkah tindakan sewajarnya diambil ke atas editor yang membenarkan 2 kesalahan lampau itu ditendang keluar?

Adakah The Star mahu menempuh nasib sama dengan akhbar Sarawak Tribune di Sarawak yang terpaksa ditutup ekoran menyiarkan karikatur menghina Nabi Muhammad S.A.W??

Difahamkan, penganjur konsert Erykah Badu mahu menyaman The Star kerana pembatalan konsert Erykah Badu yang menyebabkan kerugian kepada penganjur.

Ini kerana penganjur sudahpun mendapat kelulusan kerajaan bagi konsert berkenaan, namun masalah timbul dan pembatalan dibuat kerana penyiaran gambar kontroversi Erykah Badu itu oleh The Star.

Hanya The Star sahaja akhbar Malaysia yang dilaporkan menyiarkan gambar kontroversi itu.