below is the answer from the Culture Secs office to an E mail I sent.
My point was that the Culture Sec should have been backing the Theatre over the freedom of speech issue and opposing the rule of the mob. However, the reply, as you can see, dodges the mob issue completely and only talks about the play's subject matter, an Issue I never metioned. No backbone whatsoever! But what did I expect!


"Thank you for your email of 20th December about the Birmingham Rep's
production of "Behzti".

We are of course aware that there are strong feelings about the performance
but the theatre's artistic programme is a matter for the theatre and
Ministers cannot intervene in individual decisions. I understand that the
theatre took the decision to end the play's run because they could no longer
guarantee the safety of their audiences.   

Artists from all disciplines often confront difficult issues through their
work, and theatre has always thrived on innovation, experiment and
re-invention in its efforts to stretch the mind and challenge artistic
sensibilities. This can, at times, lead to controversy and criticism, but
it is not the role of Government to act as censors, nor to second guess the
decisions of individual theatres."