HANOI — Vietnam has banned Warner Bros’ highly-anticipated movie “Barbie” from home distribution over a scene that includes a map that exhibits China’s unilaterally claimed territory within the South China Sea, state media reported on Monday.
The U-shaped “nine-dash line” is used on Chinese maps for example its claims over huge areas of the South China Sea, together with swathes of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf, the place it has awarded oil concessions.
“Barbie” is the most recent film to be banned in Vietnam for depicting China’s controversial nine-dash line, which was repudiated in a world arbitration ruling by a court docket in The Hague in 2016. China refuses to acknowledge the ruling.
In 2019 the Vietnamese authorities pulled DreamWorks’ animated movie “Abominable”—a transfer additionally achieved by Malaysia’s authorities—and final 12 months it banned Sony’s motion film “Uncharted” for a similar cause. Netflix additionally eliminated Australian spy drama “Pine Gap” from its Vietnam companies in 2021.
The Philippines additionally pulled “Uncharted” from cinemas because of the presence of the map, and Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) additionally requested the removing of “Pine Gap” from Netflix’s companies within the Philippines.
“Barbie,” starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, was initially slated to open in Vietnam on July 21, the identical date as within the United States, in accordance with state-run Tuoi Tre newspaper.
“We do not grant license for the American movie ‘Barbie’ to release in Vietnam because it contains the offending image of the nine-dash line,” the paper reported, citing Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Department of Cinema, a authorities physique answerable for licensing and censoring international movies.
Warner Bros didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Vietnam and China have lengthy had overlapping territorial claims to a doubtlessly energy-rich stretch within the South China Sea. The Southeast Asian nation has repeatedly accused Chinese vessels of violating its sovereignty. — Reuters
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
