Tuesday 20 August 2013

Statement from Nigel Kennedy on the BBC's censorship:


On Thursday 8th August, musician Nigel Kennedy performed at the Proms with the Palestine Strings - a group of young Palestinian musicians from the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music.
Towards the end of the concert, Kennedy said "We all know from experiencing this night of music tonight that giving equality and getting rid of apartheid, gives a beautiful chance for amazing things to happen."

The concert.including the quote was available on iPlayer here, although it's now unavailable:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/player/b037v4q1

A recording of the concert was due to be aired on Friday 23d August at 7.30 pm.
Following ressure from pro-occupation lobbyists, including Baroness Deech, the Jewish chronicle has announced that the BBC will be cutting Kennedy's remarks from the televised broadcast amounting to political censorship on the part of the BBC

http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/110366/bbc-cut-kennedy-slur-proms-broadcast

The article says the BBC confimed on Tuesday that his remarks would be edited out of the concert when it is shown on BBC 4 on August 23.

I believe to cut these comments would be an act of political censorship, seeing as there was nothing in Kennedy's actions or comments that were innacurate or untruthful. I believe that Mr Kennedy acted out against apartheid and have complained to the BBC about it's stance which you can do here:-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints

Suppressing free speech and political dissent is the norm for state broadcasters under dictatorships. It gets kind of worrying when we start to see this kind of supression being practiced by our own state broadcater the BBC.

Interesting article here, which helps define apartheid in relation to Israel.

http://electronicintifada.net/content/defining-apartheid-israels-record/4095

and here is an online petition that you could sign if you have the inclination

http://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/don-t-censor-the-palestine-prom?time=1376841379



Here is  an official statement from Nigel Kennedy about the BBC's unprecedented decision to censor his brief statement about Apartheid during his prom.
https://www.facebook.com/yaronstavi/posts/10151880378849048

'Nigel Kennedy finds it incredible and quite frightening that in the 21st century it is still such an insurmountable problem to call things the way they are. He thinks that once we can all face issues for what they really are we can finally have a chance of finding solutions to problems such as human rights and even, prhaps, free speech. His first reaction to the BBC's censorship & imperial lack of impartiality was to refuse to play for an employee who is influenced by such dubious outside forces.

Mr Kennedy has, however, reminded himself that his main purpose is to provide the audience with the best music, he can deliver. To withdraw his services would be akin to a taxi driver refusing to drive their customer due to their political incorrectness. He, therefore, is not withdrawing his services that he owes to his audience, but is half expecting to be replaced by someone deemed more suitable than him due to their surplas of opportunism and career aspirations.

Mr Kennedy is glad, however, that by censoring him the BBC has created such a huge platform for the discussion of its own impartiality, its respect (or lack of it) for free speech and for the discussion of the miserable apartheid forced on the Palestinian people by the Israeli government supported by so many governments from the outside world.

Mr Kennedy believes his very small statement during his concert was purely descriptive and not political whatsoever."

PSC & Pink Floyd's Roger Waters condemn BBC for 'Political Censorship' over Nigel Kennedy

http://www.palestinecampaign.org/nigelkennedy/



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