00:02The Court of Appeal has thrown out an appeal against the government's ban on the controversial film Mentega Terbang.
00:09A three-member bench upheld the Home Minister's decision to ban the film's screening and publicity,
00:14ruling the prohibition lawful and the relevant provisions of the Film Censorship Act constitutional.
00:21Justices Ismail Brahim, Ong Chee Kwan and Ahmad Shahreer Saleh unanimously dismissed the appeal
00:27by director Kairi Anwar Jailani and producer Tan Mengkeng,
00:31upholding the High Court's earlier dismissal of their judicial review.
00:34The appellants had argued that Section 26 of the Film Censorship Act,
00:38which lets the Home Minister ban a film in the public interest,
00:41was unconstitutional and infringed free speech rights under Article 10.
00:45The Court disagreed, ruling the provision must be read in line with the Constitution and Parliament's intent,
00:50and that its scope is limited to national security, public order and morality.
00:55Judges also rejected claims the ban was irrational,
00:59noting the review process considered assessments from the Film Censorship Board,
01:03the Islamic Development Department, the Special Branch, police reports,
01:07and the minister's own viewing of the film.
01:09The director and producer had argued the film was publicly available for months without causing disorder,
01:14but the court said the law is preventive in nature and doesn't require authorities to wait for unrest before acting.
01:21The court also found the pair weren't entitled to a hearing before the ban,
01:25as the order was legislative, applying generally to the public rather than targeting them directly.
01:31Kairi and Tan filed for judicial review in December 2023.
01:35The High Court dismissed their bid in September 2025.
01:38The ban itself dates back to August 21st, 2023.
01:43Counsel N. Surendran, representing the pair,
01:45says he's been instructed to take the case to the federal court.
01:48The High Court Deminformation Garden.
01:51The High Court Well
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