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Another Cartoon Controversy

February 12th, 2006 | By: Afshin Afshar | 4 Comments »

There is another cartoon controversy brewing and this time it involves the Iranian national team.

The controversial cartoon, which shows Team Melli standing in a World Cup stadium with bombs strapped to their jerseys, was printed by Berlin’s Tagesspiegel on their Friday edition.

I am a thick skinned person, but this one made me cringe.

Are there Hamburg, Hannover, and Bayern fans out there reading this? Do Mahdavikia, Hashemian, or Karimi fit this profile?

In all fairness, Tagesspiegel did issue an apology and explanation, but it is likely that some Iranian newspaper will react and try to do the same by pushing Germans’ button.

What is happening to us? Why can’t we use some common sense, and be more sensitive about each other’s feelings?

Why can’t we stop the “an eye for an eye” approach and learn a lesson from other people’s mistakes?

I will start right here and with me. This cartoon upset me, and it thought me a valuable lesson.

Although I do not hold ill feelings towards any ethnicities or nationalities, I know that in the past I have cracked ethnic or national jokes just for the sake of a laugh.

I was wrong.

If I have ever hurt anyone’s feelings with my jokes, I apologize. That was not my intention. I pledge that I will be more careful about my choice of words and make sure that I am more aware of other people’s sensitivities.

There! Now that was not difficult at all, everyone should give it a try.

Tags: Group D (Germany 2006)

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Comments

By flo | February 14th, 2006 at 9:26 pm

OK guys,
I’ll explain this cartoon to you. In fact, it deals nearly not not at all with Iran.

First fact:
In Germany, it is forbidden by law to use the German army inside Germany. In general, it may only be used out of Germany for humanitarian aid or for defense in case of an attack. This law was passed when the German republic in 1949 and results of the bad experiences Germany has made during the regime of Adolf Hitler.

Second fact:
Right now, the german government plans to change this essential law to use the german army (”Bundeswehr”) inside Germy to secure the world soccer games. As a result, there’s now a huge dbebate in Germany wether this change is needed or not.

Fact three: The text on top of the images translates like this: “This is why the german army must definately help during the world championshis”

Intention of the caricature:
Knowing these facts, one can understand the meaning of the image.
The caricaturist shows a soccer team of the Iran as suicide bombers, and follows by that that the army would be needed.
Anyone in Germany knows that an Iranian team of suicide bombers is totally absurd. As a result, the reader can deduct that the german army is NOT needed, which is in contrast to the intentions of the government.
So, this caricature makes indeed fun of our government, which is depicted as hyper fearful and far from coping with reality.

Do you guys understand? I hope so.
Thanx.

Flo
(a Berlin guy and subscriber to “Der Tagesspiegel”)

Posted from France

By Afshin Afshar | February 15th, 2006 at 12:52 am

Flo,

Thanks for the explanation.

Now let me try to explain why we Iranians are so sensitive about this. Since the revolution of 1979 most of us have been stereotyped as a bunch of fanatics. The fact is that there are fanatics in Iran, but an average Iranian wants to go about living his life just like anyone else.

For over two decades we average Iranians have been subjected to biased news, movies, documentaries and a whole bunch of other things that portray us in a negative way.

Think about it this way, how would an average German feel if someone referred to all Germans as Nazis?

However, I think it is becoming clear to me that this whole deal is a major case of cultural, social, and political misunderstanding.

Cheers,

Afshin

By Euler | February 15th, 2006 at 4:26 am

Great explanations! Thanks! Peace!

By Alighooli | February 15th, 2006 at 7:15 pm

I don’t buy the explanation given by Flo or Der Tagesspiegel. It all sound to me a cop out under pressure. The cartoonist could have used a generic face from any region of the world, or even Germany itself. I find using the Iranian team in particular an act of over zealot newspaper editor, cartoonist, and the people who have a distaste for any forign nationals to their own. I don’t even put it past the Western governments, including the United States, efforts to create an atmosphere of hate in face of their failure to create a sane Iran Nuclear policy. These kind of propaganda will go a long way to prepare nations of the world for an attack on another nation. Americans, and other Western governments have been known to pay for editorial cartoons and articles to support their point of views.
Again, I don’t think the German government should be held responsible for this, unless it is proven that they were complaicent in this matter, but an outright disawovl of the mean spirit of the cartoon and the cartoonist by the paper in BOLD FRONT PAGE print in 2.5 inch lettering will satisfy my outrage…..

Having said that, if the team depicted were of Saudi Arabia, I would have loved it and would have laughed my ass off. It is true that a majority of the terrorists that blew up the World Trade Center were Saudies. It is also true that a proported football team from that nation will participate in the World Cup. Then the only deduction is that the Saudies are more likely to send a team of assassins to the finals in place of a football team.

Come on folks, get a life, it is only a cartoon, in my mind a cartoon lives that all Germans have a Hitler like mustache..

Posted from United States