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Rabat – Moroccan film “Le Bleu du Caftan” has once again found itself at the center of a heated controversy after the country’s Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) criticized the movie’s screening in Moroccan cinemas.
“The General Secretariat denounces allowing a film that promotes homosexuality to be screened in Moroccan cinemas, in a grave violation of the religious, national, and moral values of the Moroccan Muslim people,” PJD said in a statement on Friday.
The film’s avant-premiere in Morocco took place on June 4 at Cinema Atlas in Rabat, with the presence of the film director Maryam Touzani and her husband Nabil Ayouch, the film’s producer.
In addition, the avant-premiere saw the attendance of various public figures, including senior advisor to King Mohammed VI Andre Azoulay, among others.
The film sparked widespread controversy in Morocco as it tackles homosexuality, a topic that is heavily frowned upon in the country.
The movie tells the story of Mina and Halim,a married couple that owns a traditional caftan shop in the old medina of Sale. They appear like a normal couple, but Halim harbors a secret: his unconventional sexual orientation.
Read also: Benkirane on LGBT: Morocco Is Not Europe
As Mina falls ill, a young apprentice named Youssef joins their shop, shattering the balance the couple has created. Halim finds himself unable to hide his growing feelings for Halim.
Shortly after its avant-premiere, Le Bleu du Caftan became available across Moroccan cinemas, with the PJD urging the country’s authorities to intervene and ban the film screening in Morocco.
The Moroccan party cited the legislation passed in May 2015, which had previously been used to censor Ayouch’s controversial movie “Much Loved,” which was banned on charges of promoting “pornography, indecency and inciting minors to debauchery.”
Amid the controversy surrounding Le Bleu du Caftan, the film has received international acclaim and won several awards, including the International Critics’ Prize at the 75th edition of the Cannes Film Festival.
