After facing massive controversy in India over its documentary on PM Modi titled ‘India: The Modi Question’, BBC is now facing boycott calls in its home country over another documentary. Netizens from UK are outraged that BBC has tried to create sympathy for ‘ISIS bride’ Shamima Begum in its latest documentary titled The Shamima Begum Story. Like the documentary on PM Modi, this documentary was also 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 released, BBC was accused of giving platform to an ISIS terrorist. In the name of ‘retracing her journey’, the channel had tried to portray as a vulnerable young woman, which was seen as an attempt to garner sympathies in her favour to overturn a ban on her return to the UK imposed by the government.
The outrage against the publicly funded broadcaster have now gone up after the documentary was aired, with several UK citizens threatening to not renew their subscriptions. People, including politicians, also demanded that the funding to the channel should be scrapped for defending ISIS terrorists.
MP Scott Benton tweeted, Disgraceful decision by the BBC to give Shamima Begum a platform. Absolutely indefensible. Who on earth at the BBC makes these decisions? Time to #ScrapTheLicenceFee.
Disgraceful decision by the BBC to give Shamima Begum a platform. Absolutely indefensible. Who on earth at the BBC makes these decisions? Time to #ScrapTheLicenceFee https://t.co/Ene6SZ8Cd0
— Scott Benton MP 🇬🇧🏴 🍊 (@ScottBentonMP) February 7, 2023
Veteran media executive 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 party politician.
Defund the BBC
— Simon_2021 PhD 💎 (@DrSpock_PhD) February 8, 2023
They are no longer fit to be our state broadcaster
via https://t.co/Gm0YhMtTyw https://t.co/quJb6lRjeg
“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 people said that while it is true that Shamina was a minor when she joined ISIS, she stuck to her decision even after she became an adult. 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 also said that the BBC documentary didn’t mention that Shamina Begum was accused of being involved in the torture of female ISIS captives. She was allegedly a member of the all-female ISIS ‘Hisba’ sadistic ‘morality police’ which tortured women and girls in Syria, he said.
A large number of social media users echoed similar voices, asked to scrap the funding of BBC, and vowed to cancel their subscriptions. One Twitter user said: ‘I won’t be renewing my licence, it’s taking the p**s.’ Another user said, ‘What is happening with the BBC? Are you kidding me? Won’t ever pay my TV licence again… She’s a terrorist with no remorse, she doesn’t deserve to have her story heard like she is a victim.’
One user, who has included ‘Defund the BBC’ in the user name, 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,” said another Twitter user Denise.
“The BBC presenting Shamima Begum as a “vunerable young girl”. All beautifully staged, with ominious music back track, moody shots, tearful pieces to camera etc. Maybe they should involve some of the families of the people beheaded and tortured by her ISIS mates?” said one Jimmy Krankz.
One user went one step ahead and cancelled his subscription and filed a complaint, saying that he won’t be allowing his licence fee to be used in this way and that he has cancelled his direct debit.
Shamina Begum now lives at the Al-Roj camp in northern Syria, run by the Syrian Democratic Forces. She told the BBC said that living in the camp is worse than being in a prison, as she does not know whether she will be able to get out of the camp or not.
She agreed that she had joined a terror group, but said she does not think there is public anger against her, and the anger is against ISIS. ‘We went to ISIS, that was it. It was over, it was over and done with,’ implying that the matter should be considered as over and people should forget that she was a member of ISIS.
Shamima Begum narrated her journey to Syria, saying how she had researched to find information to join ISIS, and how she had planned her journey. She said that ISIS handlers were guiding them online, telling what to do and what not to do.
