Nod for ban on movies from Israel

Manama : The House of Representatives has approved a ban on Israeli-funded movies and other media content. The approval came as the majority of MPs voted on a report by the Council’s Services Committee during its meeting yesterday, endorsing a proposal to add a new paragraph to the existing law and banning all media content funded or produced by Israel.

The proposal amends the press and publication law by adding a new article to it, stipulating “prohibiting the screening of films and circulation of recorded publications produced or financed by Israeli funds”.

The approval came despite reservations from Information Affairs Ministry, which had requested earlier to reconsider the proposal, as “it doesn’t come in line with the joint Arab and GCC agreements that aim to support the Palestinian Case and the Arab Peace Initiative and peace in the Middle East process”. 

The proposal has been passed to the Shura Council, which will study it before referring it back to the Parliament. 

Proposal rejected

During the session, the MPs voted on another report on a proposal submitted by MP Ghazi Al Rahma. The proposal stipulates adding a line to Article 9 of Law 8 of the year 2009 in relation to combating smoking and the use of all tobacco products, mentioning that 10 per cent of the taxes on tobacco products should be allocated to support sports clubs and youth centres in the Kingdom. 

Despite Al Rahma’s justification of the proposal and its “noble goals”, the majority of MPs agreed to the committee’s opinion to reject the proposal.

The committee mentioned in its report, which was viewed yesterday that supporting the youth and sports sector should be carried out within the framework of the General Budget Accreditation Law, without the dispersal of resources.

Bill passed

MPs also passed a bill yesterday to introduce alternative punishments instead of imprisonment.