[ Electronic Frontiers Australia ]

Media Release
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Electronic Frontiers Australia Inc. 

                    Media Release                  March 15th 1999

AUSTRALIAN CENSORSHIP OUT OF STEP WITH THE WORLD

Anti-censorship watchdog Electronic Frontiers Australia today called
for an end to political interference in Australia's already harsh film
censorship system.

"Attempts by certain politicians to have the film Lolita banned sight
unseen demonstrate appalling arrogance and paternalistic contempt for
the people of Australia", said EFA spokesperson Danny Yee.

"EFA members who have seen this film in other countries report that it
deals with its subject matter in a sensitive fashion", he continued.
"The Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) sought
specialist professional opinion before assigning the film an R rating.
But politicians who have never even seen the film have responded in
typical knee-jerk fashion."

"While the community rightly has concerns about paedophilia, the hysteria
that surrounds the issue in some quarters is out of hand.  Lolita does
not condone paedophilia any more than a murder mystery condones murder."

EFA is primarily involved with online issues, but recognises that
censorship hysteria easily spreads and could result in over-zealous
regulation of the Internet.

"If Australia were to ban Lolita, it would place us seriously out of
touch with international opinion", said Mr Yee.  "In a world of global
communications, this kind of insularity will make us a laughing-stock."

Lolita can be legally watched by adults in the United States, the United
Kingdom, and most countries in the OECD.  It can be watched by twelve
year olds in France.

ENDS

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      Electronic Frontiers Australia Inc  --  http://www.efa.org.au/
      representing Internet users concerned with on-line freedoms
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      Media Contacts

      Kim Heitman          Danny Yee
      Phone: 08 9458 2790  Phone: 02 9351 5159 (w) / 02 9955 9898 (h)
      [email protected]   Email: [email protected]
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BACKGROUND

Lolita's ratings internationally (from the Internet Movie Database)
        http://us.imdb.com/Title?Lolita+(1997/I)

OFLC information on film and video classification
        http://www.oflc.gov.au/filmvid.html

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