comedian Shaden Faqih in the crosshairs of Muslim religious authorities

The irreverent sketches of Shaden Faqih, who displays his homosexuality in a country where the law provides for up to a year in prison for “unnatural” relationships, have already sparked controversy.

One of the highest Muslim religious authorities in Lebanon and a deputy filed a complaint on Friday May 10 against a comedian and LGBTQ+ rights activist for making fun of the weekly prayer. The Shiite Higher Council, the highest authority of this community, filed a complaint against Shaden Faqih, known for her irreverent and incisive humor, accusing her “attack on the Muslim religion”.

The day before, Dar al-Fatwa, the highest authority of the Sunni Muslim community, had requested the opening of a judicial investigation against the comedian, accusing him in particular of “blasphemy” and “incitement to religious and confessional sedition”. An Islamist MP, Imad Hout, also filed a complaint, according to the national information agency (ANI, official), against the actress who makes fun of imams and Friday prayers.

In a multi-faith country still deeply divided after the civil war of 1975-1990, comedians happily transgress the red lines, sometimes coming up against censorship or religious or political authorities. Shaden Faqih, who displays his homosexuality in a country where the law provides for up to a year in prison for relationships “against nature”, has already caused controversy with particularly bold sketches. Questioned by AFP, the young woman initially refused to comment.

Freedom of expression increasingly repressed

Reacting to this affair, Jad Chahrour, spokesperson for Skeyes, an NGO monitoring press freedom, said Lebanon was “became a police state”. In a statement to AFP, he deplored the fact that “civil activists, journalists and civil society organizations are repressed (…) at a time when those who commit crimes and provoke dissension govern the country”.

“This campaign against Shaden Fakih appears to be premeditated,” he again confided to the Lebanese newspaper The Orient – The Day. “The sketch was filmed in secret, because filming is normally prohibited in the venue where Shaden is performing.”explained Jad Chahrour. “The video was then posted online by suspicious accounts and then widely distributed.”

In August 2023, another Lebanese comedian, Nour Hajjar, was briefly arrested for a sketch dating back five years in which he mocked funerals.

Lebanon is considered more tolerant than other Arab states towards homosexuality, but last July, a proposal to decriminalize homosexuality, presented by a handful of deputies, provoked an outcry .