Danes axe election cartoon featuring oral sex and graphic violence
The Danish parliament has withdrawn a controversial animation aimed at encouraging young people to vote in the upcoming European parliamentary elections.
The 90-second 'Voteman' clip posted late yesterday by the Folketing parliament was intended as a tongue-in-cheek effort to bring this month's election to the fore in the minds of young Danes.
However, it came under fire for its content, which included the mustachioed and muscled 'Voteman' hero decapitating a hesistant voter, engaging in sex acts with a number of nubile cartoon friends and punching people into a polling station.
(He also jets around on a pair of dolphin waterskis, but that's beside the point).
The cartoon, released on the parliament's official YouTube channel and Facebook page on Monday, was withdrawn yestereday.
"Many people whose opinions I deeply respect have perceived the cartoon from the EU information centre as far more serious and offensive than it was intended – and believe it talks down to young people, " Mogens Lykketoft, the speaker of the Danish parliament, said on its Facebook page.
"I acknowledge that in the future Folketinget as an institution has to show more caution in terms of what we put our name to."
Voting for the 751-seat European Parliament takes place over four days beginning May 22.
