Satire wasted on BCCSA, Vlismas ruling shows

Mock sermon

The sketch, broadcast on 16 August 2010, played on East Coast Radio. Vlismas gives a mock sermon in which he jokes that it's no use killing Hindus because they just come back, thanks to their belief in reincarnation (complainants submitted that Vlismas suggested that, as such bullets, would be wasted on Hindus).

The Tribune Herald, whose journalists listened to a recording of the show, also reports that the "preacher character [created by Vlismas] says that Hindus have 'lots of gods' and that 'they can't make up their minds' and then lists the 'elephant body one, 'one with eight hands' and the 'the monkey one'. After saying that Hindus worship cows, he says, 'How can you tell a cow, hello God?'"

East Coast Radio pulled Vlismas' show and issued an apology to listeners. Vlismas can still be heard on Jacaranda 94.2 on Mondays from 9pm to midnight.

"Went too far"

"The members of the Tribunal were in agreement that this programme went too far. The derogatory reference to manifestations of the Hindu Deity exceeded the bounds of humour," the BCCSA ruled.

"Although humour is a very important element in our human existence, we accept that there are limits to what can be said in the context of humour. It is especially so in the case of religion. Remarks are made about religion, they can be so derogatory that, objectively seen, they constitute the advocacy of hatred. We find in this instance that this is indeed the case."

The BCCSA found that the sketch incited harm. "There is a further element to hate speech. Clause 16.3 requires that there must be incitement to cause harm. 'Incite' means to urge or to stir up. This can be done in many ways. The use of words like 'kill' and 'bullets' in this skit are just the kind of words that could incite listeners who are serious about their religion to suffer harm. We find that in this instance there was incitement to cause harm."

What constitutes satire?

The BCCSA justified its ruling, in which it effectively decides that it is competent to rule on what constitutes satire, partly on the fact that East Coast Radio had issued an apology to listeners.

In its response to the BCCSA, East Coast Radio categorically stated that "[t]here is no advocacy of hatred based on religion [in the sketch], rather the highlighting the lack of understanding within our communities. There is also no incitement to cause harm. The quip about 'Don't shoot him - he'll just come back' is a play on words around the Hindu tenet of reincarnation."

The BCCSA commissioners seem to have conveniently skipped this vitally important part of East Coast Radio's submission to its investigation as it found that the apology issued by ECR "points to a realisation that it contravened the Code and the only possible contravention would have been the advocacy of hatred based on religion."

Should have alerted listeners

The BCCSA readily admits that Vlismas' tone of voice and the clearly outrageous statements he makes should have alerted listeners to the fact that this was a comedy sketch that should not be taken seriously.

Obviously the East Coast Radio presenters should also have introduced the sketch to listeners but no mention is made of whether this actually happened, and equally obvious is the fact that Vlismas really had no control on whether the presenters did so before broadcasting the sketch. Contextualising the insert, which is part of the DJ's job (it aired on Ravi R's The Real Alternative show), seems like the obvious thing to do before broadcasting controversial material.

"In the result, we find that the broadcaster has contravened clause 16.3 of the Code of Conduct by broadcasting a programme that constituted the advocacy of hatred based on religion," the BCCSA concluded.

The new arbiters

It seems some holy cows are not to be slaughtered and the BCCSA is the new arbiters of what constitutes the parameters in which satirists can address bigotry and intolerance, as well as the many other uncomfortable taboos our society refuses to address.

Writing on his M&G Thought Leader blog well before this furore began, Vlismas writes that "while most things are open for debate, and for humour, the one monolithic no-no that rapes the simple symmetry of the human horizon is this nonsense that God is beyond us. Even for a religious person, it is ridiculous that this omnipotent Pops we have refuses to play with his children. How much would I love my daughter if I refused to laugh with her, at myself? Would I prefer her to dress in camouflage and be solemn and slaughter my critics, maybe even kill herself in protest? Would I demand that she intimidate cartoonists for humanising me, trying to rationalise the foibles of my imperfect fans? I would be a monster."

The BCCSA, playing our moral guardians suffering a massive failure of humour, once again proves the institutionalised intolerance to any parody of our PC status quo.

For more:

• BCCSA: Case No - 22-2010 - Hate Speech - East Coast Radio