Correction, not perfection: Dubai probably didn’t ban book from festival
I’m not afraid to admit when I might be wrong. Like many others, there are times when I jump to conclusions based on sketchy information. This is one of those times. I wrote this post about the Dubai Literary Festival allegedly censoring a certain book from the festival, and outright banning it from Dubai.
In case you missed it, here’s what happened according to this Guardian article:
The row began brewing on Monday, when newspaper reports emerged of a "ban" imposed by the festival on The Gulf Between Us, a novel by Bedell, because one of its characters, a sheikh in a fictional Gulf state, was gay. Bedell had been told by the festival organisers that her book was unsuitable for inclusion because they "[did] not want our festival remembered for the launch of a controversial book", she told reporters. Meanwhile, her publishers, Penguin, had been told by booksellers in UAE that the novel itself had been censored by the authorities.
Of course outrage ensued and prominant author Margaret Atwood withdrew from the festival in protest. She will now attend via video conference. But it turns out, this might be a case of a relatively unknown author (Geraldine Bedell) causing more of an uproar than was needed:
On Thursday, a UAE newspaper quoted the head of censorship at the country’s National Media Council (NMC), denying the novel had ever been banned. As such, Atwood argues, the words "banned" and "censored" were "not helpful".
The article continues:
As for the alleged "banning" of the manuscript: "We don’t have direct contact with the censor’s office on these matters, we rely on information from the booksellers and they told us it was banned. That is why the story broke now – not because Bedell ‘saved it up’ for publication." The novel will not be published until April.
The whole thing seems a little murky to me. So I am going to officially withhold any judgement. However, I do believe that Dubai is taking a step in the right direction by hosting a censorship debate at the festival:
The debate next Saturday will include a panel of international writers who will discuss the issues of censorship and cultural misconceptions about the acceptable limits of freedom of expression. It is a joint venture between EAIFL and PEN, the literary anti-censorship organisation, of which Atwood is vice-president.
This comes from this AFP article, which goes on to quote Dubai’s Head of the National Media Council, Ibrahim al-Abed says that they don’t ban books unless they are "crude pornography" or "contemptuous of religion".
With all that said, I have a feeling the author Bedell made a mountain out of a mole hill and created a firestorm of controversy when, well, there wasn’t any.
As I said early, however, I’m withholding my judgment in this matter until things are further clarified. I still maintain my firm stance against literary censorship, but I accusing someone of such is just as bad.
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