9.1.08

Things you won't read in the western press about Bush's ME visit

Photo The Guardian
Of course, there are these pictures of Palestinian militants in Gaza who protest Bush's visit. But the western press and the Saudi controlled Arab press agree that Gaza is not part of the Arab world, it is not part of any world, it is somewhere between the axis of evil and nowhere, as far as Bush and Olmert are concerned.

So the western press and the Saudi controlled Arab press will not tell you that ordinary Arab citizens, as well as ordinary Arab columnists in a small portion of the press not controlled by Saudi media, can also protest Bush's visit. But this will become too complexe for the western mind used to the rethoric of Evil versus Good, of Islam versus the West, of ballot box democracy, consumer civilisation, and life loving culture, versus barbaric Arabs.

To illustrate its article on Bush's visit to Israel and the ME, Lebanon's Al-Safir chooses to show a Palestinian child from Qalqilya sleeping near a curtain dotted with Israeli bullets.

In Al-Quds Al 'Arabi, columnist 'Abd-El-Bari 'Atwan takes on Bush's illogic and asks how Bush can tie the end of 'illegal' settlements* to the end of the launching of rockets on these same settlements when the rocket launchers are in Gaza and when the only Palestinian 'authority' Bush recognises and meet is in Ramallah and has nothing to do with Gaza ? How Bush can promise Abbas peace when he ties the peace process to the end of the rockets coming from a territory Abbas does not control ?**

'Atwan writes that not only Abbas does not control Gaza but he does not control Ramallah, for to enter Ramallah or to leave it he needs the approval of Israeli authorities. He cannot even smuggle a baby to or from Ramallah without the approval of Israeli authorities. 'Atwan doubts that Bush's intention in this visit is peace because if this is so he shouldn't have left peace for the last year of his two term presidency.
'Atwan ironically finishes his column by reminding the reader that his wife is not Iranian, his mother is not a Shia Muslim, and that he is an Arab to the bone, in case anybody reading his column might perceive his critique of Bush as motivated by the love of Iran. This kind of sectarian thinking is also symptomatic of the Arab press owned by the Saudi royal family and very submissive to it...The kind of freedom of expression and democracy Bush promotes in the Arab world...

Lebanese blogger Mustapha, close to March 14th, Bush's favourite political movement in the ME, explains why Bush is not welcome in Lebanon.

Todo sobre mi madre:Lebanese blogger Jamal's sweet peaceful and politically apathic mother is mad angry about Bush visiting Lebanon and has prepared some rotten eggs for him.


*A zionist oxymore since all settlements are illegal.
**In my opinion, this can only be understood as a call for civil war among Palestinians until the end of all Palestinians, or at least that's how peace efforts of the Bush presidency can be caracterised.

But what the western press won't tell you about Bush's visit to the ME, it will tell in cartoons. Saudi media definitely won't.
Here is my preferred cartoonist Steve Bell on Bush's visit:

UPDATE, January 16th: From Spiegel, a round-up of the Arab press on the visit.
Gideon Levy on Bush's visit

1 comment:

dubhaltach said...

Hmmmm ... you and the team of editors for last night at "Guides" share a taste in cartoonists. Clearly this means that you and they share impeccable taste.

 
Since March 29th 2006