Ab-Titchaz
JF-Expert Member
- Jan 30, 2008
- 14,631
- 4,225
Support pours in for Zuma over vulgar painting
By XINHUA
Posted Monday, May 21 2012 at 15:42
Support continued to pour in on Sunday for South African President Jacob Zuma over a vulgar painting that depicts him with his genitals exposed.
Support gained momentum after the African National Congress (ANC) launched an urgent court case to stop the display and distribution of the painting from the Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg and the website of the City Press newspaper.
Some cabinet ministers threw their weight behind the ANC, urging the gallery and the newspaper to remove the portrait.
Justice Minister Jeff Radebe called for a ban on the painting, saying a criminal case of crimen injuria should be opened.
"If that thing is called art, it is an insult to the dignity not only of the president but any human being. The dignity of the president has been violated," Radebe said.
Arts and Culture Minister Paul Mashatile said while the government believed in the right of artists to freedom of expression, it should not dehumanise fellow citizens.
"If an artwork doesn't respect reconciliation, it doesn't contribute to nation building. We can't have a situation where we are insulting each other every day," said Mashatile.
In its latest attempt to stop the display and distribution of the painting, the government issued a statement, saying:
"The government calls upon the Goodman Gallery to take down the offensive artwork and further calls upon the media to stop publicising the untasteful portrait. We also call upon the media to be more circumspect in what they publish as we rebuild a South Africa that was ravaged by apartheid."
But the gallery and the newspaper have refused to budge, saying that would mean censorship.
In his first reaction to the painting, Zuma said he was "shocked, and felt personally offended and violated" when he saw the copy of the painting for the first time.
The image has been displayed to "millions within and outside the country," and that despite its removal, "it will continue to exist in the minds of those people who have seen it or had access to it," Zuma said in court papers served to the gallery and the newspaper.
But the removal of the portrait from the gallery and City Press's website "will ensure the harm caused ... is limited to those who have seen it or had access to it."
Zuma said the ANC takes exception "to the symbolism the portrait uses in order to portray the ANC through its president" as responsible for "abuses of power, corruption and political dumbness" -- the theme of the exhibition.
Zuma's family also came up to show support for the president.
"It (the painting) seeks to take away our father's dignity, and destroy his true character and stature as a man, a father, and a leader of the ANC and South African society at large," said a family statement.
The painting has sparked a national debate on the issue of freedom of expression and the right to dignity.
The Twitter website has been filled with messages, most of them expressing disgust at the painting.
The painting, by artist Brett Murray, was distasteful and faded into insignificance when viewed against the backdrop of the bigger challenges facing the country, said the South African renowned poet and cultural activist, Mongane Wally Serote.
"We are making something trivial important. We are blowing it out of proportion. Whatever inspired that art was completely mediocre and distasteful," he said.
Support pours in for Zuma over vulgar painting*- Africa*|nation.co.ke