Bangladesh bans Hindi-dubbed Japanese cartoon

Bangladesh has banned a popular Hindi-dubbed Japanese cartoon for its "negative impact" on children but denied the step was taken because the show was telecast in Hindi.

"A circular has been issued asking cable operators not to air Doraemon as it contains scenes where a character frequently lies or tries to escape school work," an information ministry spokesman told PTI.

Yesterday, Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu had told the Parliament that "the government doesn't want children's educational atmosphere to be hampered by Doraemon."

The spokesman however denied reports that the ban on Japanese cartoon Doraemon was imposed because it was dubbed in Hindi.

Local media reports had earlier expressed concern that Doraemon addicts preferred to speak in Hindi instead of the native tongue Bengali.

Ruling Awami League lawmaker Shahriar Alam had last week demanded immediate ban on airing of the cartoon Doraemon in the country adding that foreign cartoons should be aired after dubbing them in 'Bangla'.

The issue of the cartoon imparting "negative teachings" to young children was raised in Parliament yesterday, after which Inu informed that TV cable operators were sent official notifications to take the series off air.

But despite the ban, the cartoon was still being seen in several areas of country while officials said the errant operators will be asked to enforce the ban.

Japanese manga artist Fujiko F. Fujio is the creator of Doraemon who revolves around a robotic cat who travels back in time from the 22nd century to aid a pre-teen boy, Nobita.

Tokyo's foreign ministry appointed Doraemon as its first "anime ambassador" in 2008 in an effort to deepen foreign interest in Japanese culture.