KUALA LUMPUR – Parit Buntar MP Mohd Misbahul Masduki suggested the government present amended entertainment-related laws to include more Jakim-friendly guidelines.
Misbahul, in his speech at the Dewan Rakyat today, claimed that he observed that neither foreign nor local artists have strictly adhered to the dress code guidelines, which prohibit both male and female artists from dressing conspicuously on stage.
He suggested the amendment of the Entertainment (Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur) Act 1992 should happen after several artists openly disobeyed guidelines under the Central Agency for Application for Filming and Performance by Foreign Artists (Puspal).
“The information minister in the previous government, together with Jakim, had come up with dress-code guidelines, such as that male artists cannot wear clothes that reveal their chest and body area or torn clothes. They are also prohibited from wearing shorts or taking off their clothes during performances, among other things.
“Meanwhile female artists cannot wear clothes that reveal the shape of their body or their chests, They also can’t wear anything too tight or too short, and therefore they must wear modest clothes that are not conspicuous.
“However, from my observation, most foreign and local artists do not comply with these guidelines.
“And therefore, I suggest that the government amend the act to include these guidelines by Jakim and the former information ministry,” he said.
He backed his suggestion by saying that the guidelines developed by the former information ministry, together with Jakim, are part of the concert-organising guidelines to ensure that there will be no conflict with Islamic teachings.
Earlier, he reiterated his stance that British rock band Coldplay should not be allowed to perform here tonight.
Towards the end of the debate session, Misbahul started badgering Deputy Communication and Digital Minister Teo Nie Ching, pressing her to respond to his suggestions.
This triggered a brief shouting match in the Dewan Rakyat when Teo repeatedly said that it was not her place, as a deputy minister, to give her opinion on the suggestions.
She also told him that it was not under the ministry’s purview to amend the act. – November 22, 2023