An episode of the cartoon. The Simpsons that refers to “forced labor camps” in China cannot be found on the Disney+ streaming service in Hong Kong, where artistic production is subject to increasing censorship.
Hong Kong once had significant artistic and cultural freedoms compared to mainland China, of which it is a special administrative region. But since the 2019 protests, authorities have cracked down on dissent in the financial hub, including stepping up film censorship.
The second episode of the 34th season of the American cartoon included the line: “Behold the wonders of China. Bitcoin mines, forced labor camps where kids make smartphones, and romance.”
The second time in three years.
an angry lisa, which first aired on the platform last October, could not be viewed on Disney+ using a connection in Hong Kong, but is available elsewhere, AFP confirmed. It is the second time in three years that the Hong Kong version of the streaming service has released an episode of The Simpsons satirizing China.
The previously censored episode showed The Simpsons visiting Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, the site of the deadly 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, and finding a sign reading: “In this place, in 1989, nothing happened “. Contacted by AFP, the Hong Kong government and Disney had no immediate comment.
censorship laws
In 2021, Hong Kong passed censorship laws that banned shows that could violate a sweeping national security law that Beijing imposed on the city. Since then, directors have had to cut parts of their films, while other productions have been banned from broadcasting.
A Taiwanese documentary about female migrant workers was pulled from a Hong Kong film festival in October after its producers refused to remove a scene showing a protest.
The censorship law does not cover streaming services, but authorities have warned that video-on-demand platforms are subject to national security law that covers crimes of subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
Beijing has long denied accusations of torture and forced labor in the Xinjiang region (far west), but a recent United Nations report found the accusations credible.
Source: BFM TV
