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BBC faces boycott calls in UK for sympathetic documentary on ISIS bride Shamima Begum

4 min read

After dealing with huge controversy in India over its documentary on PM Modi titled ‘India: The Modi Question’, BBC is now dealing with boycott calls in its dwelling nation over one other documentary. Netizens from UK are outraged that BBC has tried to create sympathy for ‘ISIS bride’ Shamima Begum in its newest documentary titled The Shamima Begum Story. Like the documentary on PM Modi, this documentary was additionally broadcast on BBC Channel Two and its streaming service iPlayer.

The documentary is a follow-up of the ten-part podcast by BBC on Shamina Begum, which was titled I’m Not a Monster, The Shamima Begum Story. After the podcast was launched, BBC was accused of giving platform to an ISIS terrorist. In the title of ‘retracing her journey’, the channel had tried to painting as a susceptible younger girl, which was seen as an try and garner sympathies in her favour to overturn a ban on her return to the UK imposed by the federal government.

The outrage in opposition to the publicly funded broadcaster have now gone up after the documentary was aired, with a number of UK residents threatening to not renew their subscriptions. People, together with politicians, additionally demanded that the funding to the channel must be scrapped for defending ISIS terrorists.

MP Scott Benton tweeted, Disgraceful determination by the BBC to present Shamima Begum a platform. Absolutely indefensible. Who on earth on the BBC makes these choices? Time to #ScrapTheLicenceFee.

Disgraceful determination by the BBC to present Shamima Begum a platform. Absolutely indefensible. Who on earth on the BBC makes these choices? Time to #ScrapTheLicenceFee https://t.co/Ene6SZ8Cd0

— Scott Benton MP 🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🍊 (@ScottBentonMP) February 7, 2023

Veteran media government and former Sun editor Kelvin Calder MacKenzie tweeted, “We are forced to pay a £159 BBC licence fee and yet had to view the corporation embrace the PR effort of Shamima Begum who wants you to know she’s no longer an ISIS wag but has seen the error of her ways. It won’t work. She wanted the ISIS world. She must live with it.”

“Defund the BBC. They are no longer fit to be our state broadcaster,” Tweeted a Reform occasion politician.

Defund the BBC
They are now not match to be our state broadcaster

through https://t.co/Gm0YhMtTyw https://t.co/quJb6lRjeg

— Simon_2021 PhD 💎 (@DrSpock_PhD) February 8, 2023

“When you look at all the people who have been cancelled, it’s unbelievable the BBC are giving terrorist Shamima Begum a platform to tell her story. Who makes these decisions???” Tweeted conservative politician Andrew RT Davies.

Several individuals mentioned that whereas it’s true that Shamina was a minor when she joined ISIS, she caught to her determination even after she turned an grownup. Photojournalist Michael Martin tweeted, “Sickened to have watched the BBC’s airing of ‘The Shamima Begum Story’. As a 15yo British girl who was indoctrinated by ISIS, she was a victim. As an adult willing to live in Syria and join ISIS she was no longer a victim. She’s previously defended the UK ISIS terrorist attack.”

Michael additionally mentioned that the BBC documentary didn’t point out that Shamina Begum was accused of being concerned within the torture of feminine ISIS captives. She was allegedly a member of the all-female ISIS ‘Hisba’ sadistic ‘morality police’ which tortured girls and ladies in Syria, he mentioned.

Numerous social media customers echoed comparable voices, requested to scrap the funding of BBC, and vowed to cancel their subscriptions. One Twitter consumer mentioned: ‘I won’t be renewing my licence, it’s taking the p**s.’ Another consumer mentioned, ‘What is happening with the BBC? Are you kidding me? Won’t ever pay my TV licence once more… She’s a terrorist with no regret, she doesn’t should have her story heard like she is a sufferer.’ 

One consumer, who has included ‘Defund the BBC’ within the consumer title, tweeted, ‘Anyone who has a BBC TV licence should cancel it today. Their support of Shamima Begum is nothing short of terrorism and treachery.’

“Why are you wasting licence payers fees on this girl. She knew what she was doing,” Tweeted one Joee. “So the BBC has decided to show a programme on over an hour long about Shamina Begum how dare they waste licence payers money on this shite,” mentioned one other Twitter consumer Denise.

“The BBC presenting Shamima Begum as a “vunerable young girl”.  All superbly staged, with ominious music again observe, moody photographs, tearful items to digital camera and so on. Maybe they need to contain a number of the households of the individuals beheaded and tortured by her ISIS mates?” mentioned one Jimmy Krankz.

One consumer went one step forward and cancelled his subscription and filed a criticism, saying that he gained’t be permitting his licence charge for use on this method and that he has cancelled his direct debit.

Shamina Begum now lives on the Al-Roj camp in northern Syria, run by the Syrian Democratic Forces. She advised the BBC mentioned that residing within the camp is worse than being in a jail, as she doesn’t know whether or not she is going to be capable of get out of the camp or not.

She agreed that she had joined a terror group, however mentioned she doesn’t suppose there’s public anger in opposition to her, and the anger is in opposition to ISIS. ‘We went to ISIS, that was it. It was over, it was over and done with,’ implying that the matter must be thought of as over and folks ought to overlook that she was a member of ISIS.

Shamima Begum narrated her journey to Syria, saying how she had researched to seek out data to affix ISIS, and the way she had deliberate her journey. She mentioned that ISIS handlers have been guiding them on-line, telling what to do and what to not do.