On Saturday, publisher Marvel said it would remove the artwork from future versions after readers in Indonesia claimed that some images contained coded messages referring to political and religious tensions in the country. They alleged Indonesian artist Ardian Syaf had sneaked in references to hardline Islamist opposition to Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, the first Christian governor of the Indonesian capital in half a century. Tjahaja Purnama caused controversy in Indonesia after saying that people should not believe Islamic leaders who use the Qu’ran verse Al Maidah 5:51 to claim Muslims can’t be led by non-Muslims. Marvel came under fire from readers in Indonesia for allowing the images, with critics labelling the artist’s action shameful. A week earlier, he had appeared on the Marvel website in a promotional interview for the X-Men series, saying that the job of reimagining classic costumes was a “dream come true”.

Source: The Guardian April 11, 2017 13:18 UTC