The Walt Disney Company. removed from its streaming service in Hong Kong an episode of the cartoon series The Simpsons that included a reference to “labor camps” in China.
The Simpsons season 34 episode “One Angry Lisa” first aired on television in October and it was unclear when the episode was removed from the Hong Kong streaming service, according to the Associated Press news agency.
In the episode, Marge Simpson’s character takes a virtual spin class, with the instructor standing next to a virtual backdrop of the Great Wall of China, saying, “Here are the wonders of China. Bitcoin mines, labor camps forced where children make smartphones”.
The issue of forced labor is a sensitive one in China. Beijing seized control of Hong Kong, a former British colony, in 1997.
Western governments and activists have accused China for years of imprisoning hundreds of thousands of ethnic minorities, mostly Uyghurs, in western Xinjiang in detention camps. China has denied accusations that it uses forced labor in these fields.
China justifies the camps by claiming they are educational centers designed to teach Mandarin and vocational skills.
In 2021, Hong Kong, a former British colony, implemented a film censorship law that would allow authorities to ban films deemed contrary to national security interests.
Source: TSF
