Egypt's
musician's union has rejected plans for British singer Elton John to perform a
private concert scheduled for May 18, because of his controversial remarks
attacking religions.
How do we allow a gay, who wants to ban religions, claimed that
the prophet Eissa (Jesus) was gay and calls for Middle Eastern countries
to allow gays to have sexual freedom, head of the Egyptian Musician
Union, Mounir al-Wasimi told the German Press Agency dpa.
The pop superstar stirred controversy after his remarks to US
celebrity news magazine Parade in February, where he said Try being a
gay woman in the Middle East - you're as good as dead, after saying
he believed Jesus was gay.
Al-Wasimi said that he has begun coordinating with security bodies to
ban John's concert, saying that the union is the only body authorized
to allow performances by foreign singers in Egypt.
Update:
Concert Goes Ahead in Morocco
28th May 2010. Based on
article
from azcentral.com
Elton John will be the highlight of Morocco's biggest music festival
despite calls by the country's main Islamist party to shelve the British
singer because of his homosexuality, organizers said.
The public spat between organizers for the Mawazine Festival and the
Justice and Development Party, or PJD, the country's largest authorized
Islamist group, illustrates the growing rift between Morocco's
Western-leaning authorities and the more conservative Muslim movements
that are on the rise in the North African kingdom.
This singer is famous for his homosexual behavior and for
advocating it, said Mustapha Ramid, a leader and spokesman for the
PJD, the biggest opposition party with 40 lawmakers in parliament.
We're a rather open party...BUT...promoting homosexuality
is completely unacceptable, Ramid said in a phone interview, stating
is was against Muslim values. Ramid feared the singer would encourage
the phenomenon and be a bad influence for Morocco's youth.
While Egypt recently canceled an Elton John concert because of
remarks he made on homosexuality, Moroccan officials ignored calls to
ban him. We deal with artists and intellectuals for what they do,
without taking into account their private life, Mawazine Festival
organizer El Hassan Neffali told reporters. Somebody's private life
is one thing, and their art or creative activities are another.
