Recording own pornographic acts an offence – director

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KOTA KINABALU: Many are not aware that recording sexual acts of oneself or of others and keeping them are in violation of the Film Censorship Act 2002.

Ahmad Hilmi Said, director of the Film Censorship Control and Enforcement Division under the Home Ministry, said a person who is selling or owning pornographic films could be charged under Section 5 of the Film Censorship Act 2002 and can be fined between a minimum of RM10,000 to a maximum RM50,000, or face a jail term of not more than five years, or both, if convicted.

“This includes recording oneself or others (in sexual acts); you should not keep it,” he advised.

Ahmad pointed out there is a trend of people making recordings and storing pornographic videos in their mobile phones. This act would be violating the law.

He disclosed this during a ‘meet the people’ event organized by the division here yesterday.

Ahmad also warned operators against selling, distributing or broadcasting films without the B Certificate, an approval by the Home Ministry. A person who is convicted of this offence will be fined between RM5,000 and RM30,000 or receive a jail term of not more than three years, or both.

He explained that the purpose of film censorship is to ensure that the content of the films distributed or broadcasted adhere to the four main aspects, namely, not conflicting with safety and public order, religion, socio-culture and conduct.

The event itself, Ahmad said, was aimed to create a platform for the division and industry players to interact, as well as to share the vision and mission of the Film Censorship Control and Enforcement Division.

“At the same time, the event provides an opportunity for industry players to raise any issues related to film censorship in Malaysia, particularly Sabah,” he said.

Ahmad said the division also organized dialogues with industry players, as well as appointed partners among industry players for them to raise their concerns.

He added that the division also reached out to consumers in order to raise their awareness on film censorship via radio broadcasting, talks, flyers and exhibitions.