PRETORIA, June 27 (ANA)- The North Gauteng High Court on Thursday ruled that the Film and Publication Board Appeal Tribunal's process for the Inxeba (Wound) film reclassification was legally flawed, and should be reviewed and set aside. This means the controversial film's porn classification is overturned.
Judge Joseph Raulinga said the process by which Inxeba was reclassified was procedurally unfair because the film's producers were not given proper chance to be heard.
The ruling upholds the initial rating of 16SNL age restriction.
However, Raulinga said the film has a potentially damaging impact on the rights of Xhosa women, which could cause division within the Xhosa community.
"It undermines the dignity of the Xhosa people," he said.
The film depicts the story of Kwanda, a gay factory worker, who travels from the city to the rural area of his family's origin to be circumcised in a traditional rites-of-passage ceremony.
Traditional leaders objected to the film, saying it portrayed Xhosa culture in a derogatory way.
The award-winning film was then pulled from cinemas earlier this year after the Film and Publication Board's Appeals Tribunal rated it X18, the same as hardcore pornography.
This meant it could not be shown in mainstream cinemas.
Earlier in March, the court temporarily lifted the X-rated ban on the film pending the outcome of the review proceedings.
The film has claimed eight South African Film and Television Awards (Safta) nominations, including for Best Actor, Best Directing and Best Film.
It also won 19 awards at 44 festivals in more than 25 countries worldwide, including South Africa. The film has been shortlisted for this year's Oscars in the category of Best Foreign Language Film.
- African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Lindiz van Zilla
