The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 — Malaysia has allowed hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas to play at Arthur's Day in Sunway Lagoon on Sept 25 — one of four official global spots celebrating Guinness Stout's 250th anniversary — but only for non-Muslims.

The Information, Communication and Culture Ministry had put in this condition, apart from telling the brewery not to put any logos or sell the bitter-sweet brew at the concert which also features local act Reshmonu, several bands and deejays.

It is learnt that music concert rules disallow breweries or alcoholic drinks makers from sponsoring such events but the ministry relented as the concert is expected to boost the tourism industry affected by the recession and the A(H1N1) flu outbreak.

A sentence in the local Arthur's Day website — www.arthursday.com.my — states the event is only for non-Muslims aged 18 and above. The concert at the Sunway Lagoon Surf Beach costs RM103 an entry.

Kuala Lumpur is the Asia-Pacific venue for Arthur's Day, celebrating founder Arthur Guinness who opened the brewery in Dublin in 1759 with a 9,000-year lease and is now one of the world's most recognisable brands. Malaysia, which prides itself for being a Muslim nation, is one of the top 10 Guinness consuming countries in the world with the bitter available everywhere.

Apart from the Kuala Lumpur concert, Guinness is organising concerts in hometown Dublin and London apart from events in Australia, Canada, Indonesia and the United States.

The restrictions on Muslims comes on the back of the suspended caning for a Muslim mother-of-two caught drinking beer, PAS protests against beer sales at convenience outlets in Selangor and the Michael Learns To Rock concert in Genting Highlands on Sept 5 which falls during the current Ramadan fasting month.

Both PAS and Umno, the dominant party in the ruling Barisan Nasional federal government, have been at pains to flash their Islamic credentials for the crucial Malay vote.

Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Rais Yatim last month came under attack for proposing an Internet filter ostensibly to cut out cyberspace pornography although critics said it was to police online dissent.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak stopped the tender for the Internet filter which authorities said was actually a survey to gauge a feasibility for such a filter. Najib also criticised a syariah court ruling to cane Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno for drinking beer, urging her to appeal against the sentence.

The ruling to shut out Muslims from the Black Eyed Peas concert is strange as they last performed to an unrestricted audience in Malaysia in late 2007. The Black-Eyed Peas is riding high in the charts with their “Boom Boom Pow” single from their latest album “The E.N.D” which stands for The Energy Never Dies.

Malaysia has played host to several international acts over the years but pop sensation Beyonce Knowles shelved her Malaysian concert also in late 2007 and went to perform in Indonesia after pressure to cover up and tone down what was seen as a sexually-provocative performance.

However, singer Gwen Stefani dressed modestly during her concert in 2007 while organisers for the Pussy Cat Dolls concert in Sunway Lagoon were fined for their sexy performance in 2006.

Guinness has organised a global celebration for Arthur's Day which starts in Dublin at 1759 GMT on Sept 24 (1.59am Malaysian time, Sept 25) with glasses being raised to Arthur Guinness in over 150 countries.

According to its www.g250years.com celebration website, there will be spectacular events in major cities like New York to intimate affairs at bars or pubs.

In Canada, there will be a string of black carpet VIP parties from Vancouver, home of the 2010 Winter Olympics, through to Toronto, Ottawa and Halifax.

Australians can party at each major state capital city in what it termed are iconic Guinness venues while in Indonesia, there will be a bus safari travelling through 10 of its key cities from October.

Comments (59)

Show/Hide comments

Show/Hide comment form