Foul Smell From Beijing More Than Olympic Pollution
August 9, 2007 by IrishSpacemonk
This week’s Friday Drawing for a Reader, speaks directly to China’s human rights record on the eve of the 2008 Olympics, notably in reference to Darfur. Cooper’s blog, Darfur: An Unforgivable Hell on Earth, inspired the drawing.
While I understand China’s made progress on its Darfur stance, it continues its repression of human freedoms, notably political expression. This is a freedom you suddenly appreciate more fully when you realize you’re drawing something that in another country could get you imprisoned.
NOTE ABOUT THE DRAWING: The inspiration for this cartoon came from a Chinese propaganda poster.
(3 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
Loading ...
Who is that in the poster, or who is the character supposed to represent?
http://www.blackperspective.net
China’s leader, Hu Jintao. I suppose it’s quite difficult to quickly recognize a face I had to cover up with a mask. And without text (silence) there weren’t any additional visual clues to help. I’ll try to keep this in mind for future drawings. Thanks for the visit.
You may want to add religious persecution too especially the Falun Gong practitioners…… they haul them to jail and harvest their organs for transplant.
Thanks for the point.
Yes, the list of human rights violations by China is huge, so it’s surprising we (the US) is so supportive of a non-democratic regime.
And as far as political reform - it seems China’s learned that you can distract your citizens from speaking out through capital materialism, a lesson learned from guess who.
Good comments, right?
Yes. Great comments. Thanks. I’m actually a bit surprised I’m still drawing a week later, so it’s great to get a response.
Your drawing is based on your biased imagination and showing you have not any real knowledge about China.
Sier - glad to see it stirred you up enough to get your comment. I completely agree - my drawings are always based on my “biased” imagination. However, to say I have no real knowledge of China, let me tell you a few points of what I know. First, I’ve met and talked with the real people of China, and just like in America, they are good people. It’s the government that I’m being critical of, and no way you cut it, China is a repressive country, that cracks down on basic human rights, freedoms fundamental to life. This repression is maintained by one of the worlds largest military’s.
The cartoon is absolutely unrecognizable. The only known part is the 5 rings of Olympic. Is the cartoonist directing at the Olympics organization??? F-every Americans and Canadians and French…you guys are just jealous…
Hmmm….Sop. Sorry that you do not recognize Hu Jinato. Truth is most people wouldn’t recognize him even without the mask, which is sorta sad considering he’s head of a government that is repressive when it comes to human rights and freedom of speech.
And I’d actually take your criticism more directly if you didn’t end your comment by F-ing the Americans, Canadians and French. Obviously your just pissed off about the protests…that’s a good thing. Because it means those protests are working.
Best of luck and try looking up who Hu Jinato is sometime and then maybe you’ll recognize him.
Hi! is it possible for you to explain more about the cartoon and what its hidden meanings are? For instance, what the guns (if they are guns) drawn on the top right hand of the picture. Are the red parts representing china? And who are the people in the background of the picture? And how about the image on Hu’s finger? It would be great if you could tell us more about the picture, thanks!
Yeah sure, it means all that…I mean I’ve failed at my job as a political cartoonist if I have to explain too much. But if I must explain: 1) the transition of red stripes is a motif from a Chinese flag, moving from straight stripes to AK-47s, which I’m using as a symbol of Communist military oppression. 2) The bodies in the background are the starving bodies of Darfur, as they struggle against ethnic cleansing, however they could also represent any group of people oppressed by China’s government. 3) Hu is Hu, the leader of China. 4) The mask is the because China’s air is polluted horribly. 5) on the mask is the rings of the Olympics (not sure why the Olympics granted the games to China but they did.) 6) the gesture is that no one speak ill of China’s government, and 7) the sign on his finger is a dollar sign - as China’s economy is tied to US money.
dude, i dont know who u are or what u are trying to achieve, what i can tell though is first that ur drawing sucks(obviously no one noticed the person)!!! Maybe art lesson would help?? Second I dont think u have any clue about people and situation over there in china I mean all u guys get is media crap from US which oppose chinese government anyway. YEah maybe u have spoken with some so called chinese people but have u ever lived in china before?Well I have and I tell u its not bad at all… what is ur problem anyways, i mean US suppress also those indians and other minorities, what about the vietnam and iraq war? Is that suppose to bring peace?lol So why dont u guys mind ur business first and free all the protesting indians before concerning yourselves with foreign affairs.
Hey Your Bloody Hell, I’m invigorated that my cartoon stirred you so. Obviously political cartooning isn’t your thing ‘cuz you’d understand that awesome drawing isn’t a requirement, but it’s the fact that it makes a point, aggravates the conscious mind, and stirs action. And I’m glad I stirred action on your part to write a comment that demonstrates a few things. First, English isn’t your native language, this is apparent. Second, the derogatory way in which you refer to “indians” is so politically incorrect that you’d have to be culturally uneducated to use it repeatedly (it’s Native American in case you’re wondering.) And third, I’ve no beef with the Chinese people. I’m sorry for your country and the fact that your government makes blogs like mine impossible.
So I guess the only complaint you had that has any relevance is the fact that nobody recognized who the bloody hell “Hu” was. The truth be told I could have placed a photo of Hu with no mask and 99% of Americans wouldn’t have recognized him from a lineup. That’s sad but true. In fact, I’d say that a large portion of the Chinese population have no clue what their leader looks like.
Best of luck though on your English studies.
When i first saw this cartoon i believed that the point that you were trying to make was the human right violations China has made in Tibet. Does any of this cartoon refer to Tibet or was your only points towards the Dafur Region in Sudan?
T MAniac - yes, your right. The cartoon was originally drawn in reference to China’s support and silence on the Darfu Region of Sudan and their support of the Sudanese government. However I think it’s vague enough to be applicable to China on Tibet, China on political expression in their own country, China on religious freedoms…the list can go on.
Why is everyone complaining about China’s human rights violations, pollution, and all that jazz? Let’s be honest, these items should have been making headlines for the past 5 years. This song and dance of complaints won’t change China’s course at this point.
Beautiful drawing, by the way.
http://www.mideastbymidwest.com