MANILA:
Lady Gaga will be allowed to hold a
second concert in Manila on Tuesday night after state censors ruled her
"provocative" act was within legal bounds, a city official said.
Officials
who monitored the first show on Monday found no violations of the permit terms
banning nudity, blasphemy, and lewd conduct, said Antonino Calixto, mayor of
Pasay City, the district where the event was held.
"Admittedly,
some of the statements and choreography were provocative but the content and
presentation taken all together can be considered as part of an artist's
expressions" that are protected by the constitution, he added.
"Therefore,
the city government of Pasay sees no compelling or legal reason to disallow the
second concert from proceeding," Calixto said in a statement.
Up to
20,000 fans are expected to attend the American pop phenomenon's final Manila
show, the same number as were at Monday's concert.
Conservative
Christians in the Catholic-majority nation have been staging street protests
daily to demand a government ban on the events, alleging some of Lady Gaga's
songs are blasphemous.
One
senior church leader said her show amounted to "devil worship".
Lady
Gaga spoke out against her local critics at Monday's concert, declaring she was
"not a creature of your government" before belting out her
controversial song "Judas".
Her
world tour, "The Born This Way Ball", has hit the headlines on its
way through Asia, with an upcoming concert in Muslim-majority Indonesia denied
a police permit for fear of violence from religious hardliners.
Prominent
Filipino lawyer Romulo Macalintal, one of those who sought to block the Manila
concert, said he was resigned to the local government's ruling.
"They
are the persons authorised by law and if that is their decision, I cannot do
anything, I just leave it to God," he said.
-
AFP/wm
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
No comments:
Post a Comment