Old censors rated 28% of films in Malta higher than in UK

The Ombudsman had recommended that a guidance board similar to that regulating theatre productions, should be adopted for the rating of films, after a film distributor complained that ratings by the film classification board were higher than UK ratings in 28% of films.

"The board should include a mixture of men and women with as close to a gender balance as possible, incorporating persons of different ages so that there is a reasonable spread of age amongst the members. It should include persons who can assess equality issues and the concerns of vulnerable persons and persons with special needs. Moreover, at least one of the members should be well versed in issues affecting children and young people, either as parent or through his previous employment or other activities he is involved in," Joseph Said Pullicino, chief justice emeritus, said in his opinion.

According to the complainant, ratings by the chairperson of the now-defunct Board of Film and Stage Classifiers were rarely appealed because the film was reviewed by members of the same board; and that the board never provided a report explaining their ratings, insisting that the board should not be allowed to operate with so much secrecy in a democratic country.

With censorship laws being overhauled at the time, after the same board refused to allow the staging of Anthony Nielson's 'Stitching', a new film-age classification board and theatre guidance board were proposed to replace the board of censors.

"While in the case of the film-age classification board no indication was made of the expertise to be possessed by the members appointed on this board, a detailed description was provided in the case of the Theatre Guidance Board," the ombudsman said.

Said Pullicino said that rules of good administration required that entities in the public sphere operate in an open and transparent manner as possible, giving reasons when taking decisions. "The basic values of transparency, accountability and fair decision making suggest that the board - and the legislator - should adopt a policy whereby a brief report indicating the key grounds which led the Board to decide in favour of a classification, is made available without delay to the person requesting certification."

The Ombudsman further commented the publication of guidelines would help the public understand clearly how films are reviewed and why a film has been classified within a category and not another, as well as help parents decide whether a movie, even if rated within a specific category, was suitable for their children.

Said Pullicino however noted that while proposed regulations on censorship effectively did away with censorship altogether for theatre productions, they retained a measure of control over the showing of films through their pre-viewing by a board whose function is to classify their content according to the age of the audience.

"The emphasis of the new regulations should be that of providing an objective assessment that will serve as a guidance to help create an informed audience to make a choice, rather than an unwanted, imposed protection, forcibly limiting the adult's freedom to choose."