Renowned author Dan Brown is under fire by Philippine authorities and the rest of the nation for calling the country's capital, Manila, the "gates of hell."
The author, famous for writing controversial novels like The Da Vinci Code and The Lost Symbol, has created a stir among the Filipino people after his new book, Inferno, gave a negative impression about the Philippines, particularly its capital---Manila.
The new novel features Brown's famous fictitious character, Robert Landon, as he journeys the Asian country and discovers the destitution within the area. In Inferno, the Harvard symbolist is with Sienna, a new character, as they discover the city of 13 million rich and poor people.
"There she is overcome by the city's destitution, filth and child prostitution - and is later raped in one of its many slums," the Guardian describes of the novel.
While the book follows the same plot of Brown's past works-one that features much pseudo-science and religious symbolism, it's how Inferno depicts Manila that has Filipinos on their feet.
In the book, Brown describes the capital as a city of "six-hour traffic jams, suffocating pollution [and] horrifying sex trade." Sienna even tells the readers that going through the area is like a "run through the gates of hell."
With such harsh words, the Philippine's Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) expresses its disappointment on how Brown described the country's capital.
In an open letter to Brown, MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said the depiction on the author's book is "inaccurate."
"While we are aware that yours is a work of fiction, we are greatly disappointed by your inaccurate portrayal of our beloved metropolis," Tolentino wrote, as published on SunStar.
"We are displeased of how you have used Manila as a venue and source of a character's breakdown and trauma, much more her disillusionment in humanity."
According to Tolentino, Manila is the center of "Filipino spirit, faith and hope." He even noted that unlike Brown's "gate of hell" description of the capital, Manila is in fact an "entry to heaven."
Ending the letter, the MMDA Chair asked the renowned author to keep in mind the real ideals of the Asian capital, and that his letter may serve as a guide for Brown in his next works, should he choose to cite Manila again.
So far, Dan Brown has yet to reply to the letter.