Ads in Malaysia slammed for being racist
A series of recent Ramadan advertisements in Malaysia has drawn flak from many viewers for being racist.
The three 8TV public service announcements (PSA) under fire depicted a Chinese girl behaving inappropriately at a bazaar during Ramadan, a month of fasting observed by Muslims every year.
In the three ads, the girl shouts at a stall owner; she eats at a stall with Muslim customers watching her; and she wears a sleeveless blouse, but with her shoulders pixelated.
After the scenes end, there were messages advising viewers not to "get carried away" during Ramadan, which this year started on 1 August, and asking them to "understand and respect the significance of Ramadan."
The ads were met with heavy public criticism. Some angry viewers claimed that the announcements were racist and inappropriate.
A Web user also set up an "8TV - The Racist TV Channel" Facebook group with "We're racist and we don't care" as its tagline.
According to The Star, Facebook user Shamyl Othman said the ads were insulting to both non-Muslims and Muslims.
"Not only are they in bad taste, they trivialise the significance of Ramadan," he said.
On 8TV's Facebook page, Zoey Low said: "We are to respect those who fast but we if we exercise our right to eat in public, we are greedy (and inconsiderate)?"
According to 8TV, the ads were meant as advice for non-Muslims on the etiquette of Ramadan.
But after coming under fire for its racist undertones, 8TV, owned by media company Media Prima, has stopped airing the ads and have taken them down from Youtube as well.
According Malaysian news reports, after asking viewers to "chill" and not "overanalyse" the ads through Twitter, Media Prima chief operating officer Ahmad Izham Omar tweeted yesterday, "Ok guys. We're pulling out the ads. Thank you very much for your concern."
In a statement posted on their Facebook page on Tuesday evening, 8TV also said, "It is with much regret that there were misinterpretations in the PSA that were meant to serve only as a message of respect for the Ramadan month.
"The message was not meant to offend anyone, race or creed in any way. This is an honest mistake involving a very small amount of humour that was misinterpreted which led to concerns."
You can view the ads here:
