Two days ago, the censorship commission of the Ministry of the Interior ruled that the Ricky Martin concert on October 16th would potentially damage the mental health of Honduras's youth and they therefore set age restrictions on who could attend.
Porfirio Lobo Sosa returned to Honduras Saturday and overruled them. Anyone may attend the concert without respect to age.
This has, all along, been a battle between the conservative religious movements of Honduras, of which Interior Minister Áfrico Madrid is a member, and human rights, as recognized by Honduran law and international treaties signed by Honduras.
Lobo Sosa first intervened when Madrid made noises like he was considering not giving Ricky Martin a visa to enter Honduras to perform the concert. At that point Lobo Sosa ordered that Martin be admitted saying that anything less would be a violation of Martin's human rights.
Now he's made it clear that the age restrictions were wrong as well.
So Ricky Martin is just sexy enough for all of Honduras to enjoy the show.
Showing posts with label Ricky Martin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ricky Martin. Show all posts
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Ricky Martin: Just Too Sexy?
Today Porfirio Lobo Sosa, in Washington, D.C., ordered his government to make sure Ricky Martin was allowed to enter the country to perform his concert in Honduras.
The message was conveyed by his Human Rights Minister, Anna Pineda. On the morning television program Frente a Frente, she said:
She pointed out that Martin was coming as a UN good will ambassador for UNICEF, with a message against sexual abuse, and that as that representative, he would not have an act that caused harm to anyone, and even less to children.
Nonetheless, the official government censorship committee has put age restrictions on attendance. No children under 15 admitted because of "erotic content". Alberto Espinal, director of the the group that made the decision to restrict attendance, said:
Martin's show is called Music, Soul, Sex.
Maybe they should look to what's on Honduran television before saying this show was too erotic for Honduran youth.
The message was conveyed by his Human Rights Minister, Anna Pineda. On the morning television program Frente a Frente, she said:
"The official position of the government has been to respect human rights and trying to keep in line with that policy, it has has been arranged, through the Secretary of Justice and Human Rights, that the singer Ricky Martin can enter and perform his show."
She pointed out that Martin was coming as a UN good will ambassador for UNICEF, with a message against sexual abuse, and that as that representative, he would not have an act that caused harm to anyone, and even less to children.
Nonetheless, the official government censorship committee has put age restrictions on attendance. No children under 15 admitted because of "erotic content". Alberto Espinal, director of the the group that made the decision to restrict attendance, said:
"We take this measure to protect the mental health of the youth of Honduras....Martin is offering eroticism."
Martin's show is called Music, Soul, Sex.
Maybe they should look to what's on Honduran television before saying this show was too erotic for Honduran youth.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Too Gay For Honduras
I was frankly amazed to read in Thursday's El Heraldo that Ricky Martin, the Puerto Rican pop singer who is openly gay, might be denied a visa to enter Honduras and give a concert, solely because he's gay.
None the less, that's more or less what Áfrico Madrid, Interior Minister, (the man who banned Halloween in Honduras) told El Heraldo. In an interview he said that he had received pressure, though no written requests, from the church organizations of Honduras to deny him a visa because he was a bad example for families in Honduras. Madrid told El Heraldo:
Ricky Martin, openly gay since 2010, lives with his two children and his partner.
Just to be clear, Honduras cannot legally deny a person admission just because they are gay. As Sandra Ponce was forced to point out today in response to Áfrico Madrid's insanity, to deny him entrance would be a violation of the Honduran constitution, human rights, and international treaties to which Honduras is signatory.
But the fine points of law, like the Honduran constitution and human rights, often seem to be beyond the grasp of Áfrico Madrid.
None the less, that's more or less what Áfrico Madrid, Interior Minister, (the man who banned Halloween in Honduras) told El Heraldo. In an interview he said that he had received pressure, though no written requests, from the church organizations of Honduras to deny him a visa because he was a bad example for families in Honduras. Madrid told El Heraldo:
"It is through the departmental rules that we will analyze the request they presented to hold the event and in all cases it is the management, based on the convenience and to safeguard the moral and ethical principles of our society, that will authorize or not the event."
"Representatives of the Christian churches, Evangelical and Catholic of Honduras, have asked that we not authorize the permission because he is not a good family example,....this is not the type of family that the laws of Honduras and Honduran society want to construct and promote in the young and the rest of the population."
Ricky Martin, openly gay since 2010, lives with his two children and his partner.
Just to be clear, Honduras cannot legally deny a person admission just because they are gay. As Sandra Ponce was forced to point out today in response to Áfrico Madrid's insanity, to deny him entrance would be a violation of the Honduran constitution, human rights, and international treaties to which Honduras is signatory.
But the fine points of law, like the Honduran constitution and human rights, often seem to be beyond the grasp of Áfrico Madrid.
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