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Marcos on 'Barbie' map controversy: 'It’s a work of fiction'

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Job Manahan, ABS-CBN News 

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and " star="" Margot="" Robbie.="" KJ="" PPA="" pool="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/news/07/14/marcos-barbie-07142023.jpg"/><figcaption>President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and &quot;Barbie&quot; star Margot Robbie. KJ Rosales, PPA pool/Margot Robbie, Instagram </figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on Friday dismissed concerns over the Barbie film&#x27;s depiction of a world map drawing allegedly showing China&#x27;s claims to the disputed South China Sea. </p><p>Earlier this week, the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/07/11/23/mtrcb-allows-barbie-screening-in-ph-amid-controversy">allowed </a>the fantasy comedy film to be shown in cinemas, convinced that the &quot;cartoonish map&quot; did not depict the so-called nine-dash line, which China uses to justify its maritime claims. </p><p>“Maganda raw eh, sabi nila,” Marcos said of the film, as quoted by the Presidential Communications Office.</p><p>“Siyempre, ‘yung sinasabi nila ‘yung kasama doon sa ‘yung boundary line na ginawa. Ang sagot ko doon, what do you expect? It’s a work of fiction,” he said in a chance interview with reporters in Northern Samar,. </p><p>(It was good, they said. Of course, among their concerns is the boundary line. I told them, &#x27;What do you expect? It is a work of fiction.&#x27;)</p><p>Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, despite rival claims from other Southeast Asian countries including the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam.</p><p>Vietnam reportedly banned the Barbie film over its map scenes which portrayed the famous doll&#x27;s make-believe journey from Barbie Land to the real world. <br/> </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/07/09/23/warner-bros-speaks-up-on-controversial-map-in-barbie-movie">Warner Bros. speaks up on controversial map in &#x27;Barbie&#x27; movie</a></li></ul><p>In a separate letter to Sen. Francis Tolentino, who had criticized the film for &quot;violating Filipino fisherfolks&#x27; rights&quot;, the MTRCB said it had asked Hollywood studio Warner Bros to &quot;blur&quot; the controversial lines on the map.</p><p>Censors said they found only eight dashes around the landmass labelled &quot;Asia&quot;.</p><p>&quot;Moreover, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia are not visible on the map,&quot; the board said in the letter dated July 11 and shared with reporters.</p><p>&quot;This is in stark contrast to the maps found in the banned films &#x27;Abominable (2019)&#x27; and &#x27;Uncharted (2022)&#x27;,&quot; it said. </p><p>The Philippines&#x27; approval of &quot;Barbie&quot; coincided with the seventh anniversary of an international ruling that China&#x27;s historical claims to the South China Sea have no legal basis.</p><p>The fantasy comedy film about the famous doll, directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, is set to open in the Philippines on July 19.</p><div><strong> — with a report from Agence France-Presse</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2720018" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

In a chance interview with reporters in Northern Samar, Marcos described the movie as 'a work of fiction.'

Marcos on 'Barbie' map controversy: 'It’s a work of fiction'

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Marcos on 'Barbie' map controversy: 'It’s a work of fiction'

Job Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published July 14, 2023 04:26 PM PHT

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Updated July 14, 2023 04:27 PM PHT

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Ferdinand Marcos Jr

barbie movie

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South China Sea

West Philippine Sea

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