'Tintin in Congo' has been banned for children over racism fears, and is currently embroiled in a row about political correctness
'Tintin in Congo' has been banned for children over racism fears, and is currently embroiled in a row about political correctness.
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The Campaign for Real Education has condemned the publishers as "over the top" for deciding to package one of his early adventures, 'Tintin in the Congo', in shrink-wrap and with a warning about its content.
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George Remi, the Belgian artist better known as Herge, first published his tale of the boy detective in Africa in 1930, but he removed several references to the Congo being a Belgian colony when he re-worked it in 1946.
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But the book still contained a number of images that were perceived as racist, with one of them showing a black woman bowing to Tintin and saying "White man very great ufffdWhite mister is big juju man."
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The Commission for Racial Equality claimed the book depicted "hideous racial prejudice" and said it should be removed from sale in 2007.
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The book's publisher, Egmont UK, said that it recognised that some readers may be offended by the content.
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"This is why we took the unusual step of placing a protective band around the book with a warning about the content and also included an introduction inside the book by the original translators explaining the historical context," the Telegraph quoted a spokesman as saying.
"Whilst being frequently requested by fans and collectors who had seen it available in other languages, the work contains scenes which some readers may find offensive," the spokesman added.
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