Malaysia Decline Application For Lamb Of God To Play In Kuala Lumpur On September 28th.
The news we’ve feared for the last few weeks has been confirmed- The Communications And Multimedia Ministry of Malaysia has rejected Lamb Of God’s application to play Kuala Lumpur in September.
According to the ministry, “The performances of the group were found to infringe on the religious sensitivities and cultural values of Malaysian society”. The decision was reached earlier today at a Central Committee meeting for ‘Applications For Filming And Performances By Foreign Artistes’.
We reported a few days ago that The Department Of Islamic Development In Malaysia (Jakim) objected on the basis “the practices and acts of black metal groups were misguided and contrary to the true teachings of Islam”, and cited the band’s use of verses from the Quran.
PAS Youth in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia also called for a boycott of the show, claiming ‘Walk With Me in Hell’, from the 2006 album Sacrament, had parts of Quranic verses arranged in “inappropriate” positions.
Sad news for the excited Malaysian Lamb Of God fans. If you are a muslim fan, or were planning to go to the show, we’d love to hear your comments below.
UPDATE: The band has now issued an official statement on the matter.
As widely reported, LAMB OF GOD’s concert in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia scheduled for September 28th has been cancelled by the government, who refused to issue a permit for the show even though the concert had been on sale and had sold over 1,500 tickets.
LAMB OF GOD’s guitarist Mark Morton has issued the following statement regarding the decision by the Malaysian government. Shows scheduled in New Zealand, Australia, and Thailand will still be performed by the group:
“It is very evident (and a bit frustrating) that the groups, parties and powers that have taken the most offense to our music and lyrics, have themselves only made a passing glance at the content and meanings of those songs. We would invite anyone offended by our music to engage in a discussion regarding the true motivations behind our work, especially before publicly slandering us based on assumptions and shallow misinterpretation.
We sincerely apologize to our amazing fans in Malaysia for the cancellation. Many thanks to all who have spoken out in support of us through this.”
-LambOfGodNews
Source: The Star
Muslim Legal-Expert Says “Prove Offensive Nature Of Lamb Of God Before Banning Them”
In the ongoing battle between Islamic groups in Malaysia and concert organisers for Lamb Of God’s scheduled 28th September show, a Muslim legal expert has today spoken out against the objections.
A Mufti (Muslim expert who is empowered to provide guidance on such issues), Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, from the Malaysian state of Perlis has said “The people raising the objections should provide proof, such as lyrics, to show that the musical acts are truly objectionable and will negatively impact our society and culture.”
This goes against the Malaysian Prime Ministers department, who demanded the band were banned, as they could cause “untold harm and moral decadence” among young people.
Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin added that he hadn’t heard the music of Lamb Of God but “ban culture” made it difficult for Malaysia to embrace new ideas, and it isn’t fair for an act to be banned because Malaysia has differing opinions, “A performance can be banned if proven to be unsuitable but not just because you don’t like it!”.
Read the full article online at Malaysia’s The Star.
-LambOfGodNews
‘The Department Of Islamic Development Of Malaysia’ raises objection to Lamb Of God’s Scheduled Show in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysian news outlet ‘The Star’ reports that The Department Of Islamic Development Of Malaysia has raised a formal objection to the proposed Lamb Of God concert on 28th September 2013 as part of Rockaway 2013. The Star quotes director-general of the organisation, known as Jakim, Datuk Othman Mustapha saying the group “raised the objection on Friday because the genre of music that the group had performed was a mix of metal songs with the reading of verses from the Quran”.
Of course, as many Lamb Of God fans know, the band members themselves have varied religious beliefs and morales, none of which are against religion. The lyrics of their music, while often dealing with various themes and political view-points also have little to do with religion, and don’t present any impression of religious intolerance.
Director-General Othman said the objections raised were “in accordance with the decision of the Fatwa (Edicts) Committee that the practices and acts of black metal groups were misguided and contrary to the true teachings of Islam.”
The decision will be referred to officials in Malaysia for further consideration, and while we fully respect the religion and decisions of Malaysia, it would be a great shame if Lamb Of God fans in Malaysia were to miss out!
You can read the full article over on The Star Malaysia, and see more about Rockaway 2013 on their FaceBook page.
-LambOfGodNews
Lamb Of God News 