Picking Up the Pieces Competition Winners

The following are the winning cartoons from the Picking Up the Pieces cartoon competition. These and other cartoons submitted for the competition can be viewed at the Goethe-Institut Library Lounge on Monrovia St., Nairobi.

First Place Winner
By Mwaura Kirore

Second Place
By Kennedy Kaburu

Joint Third Place
By Alphonse Omondi

Joint Third Place
By Elly Maloba

Picking up the Pieces: Cartooning the Post-Election Crisis

Over the last few weeks, Kenya has witnessed post-election violence on an unimaginable scale. As efforts to resolve the political stalemate continue apace, there is need for the Kenyan society to initiate dialogue on the root causes of this violence and also to provide alternative avenues for the people to air their grievances without resorting to force.

The Association of East African Cartoonists (KATUNI), the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) and the Goethe Institut have organized a cartoon competition entitled “Picking up the Pieces” in hopes of contributing towards the identification of a lasting solution to the problem.

The goals of this competition are to identify the reasons for the violence and propose ways out of the crisis on the basis of the following questions:

1) What are the root causes of the violence?

2) How have our leaders reacted to crisis?

3) What is the way forward?

The competition has been open to all professional and amateur cartoonists throughout the country. All the country's top cartoonists (including the Daily Nation's GADO, MADD and KHAM of the Standard and Victor Ndula of the Nairobi Star) as well as a large number of other lesser-known-but-by-no-means-less-given-to-cutting-satire cartoonists have elected to participate and their works will be on show at the Goethe Institut for two months starting 7^th March 2008. Also participating are cartoonists from around the world who have sent in their cartoons on the crisis as they viewed it from their various countries. The exhibition provides a unique, tragicomic and compelling look at the events of the last two months through the eyes of our society's most unforgiving critics.

On 7th March, as part of the launch of the exhibition, we have arranged for a public forum from 4.00-6.00pm discuss various aspects of the crisis i.e the constitutional aspect, economic aspect, historical and cultural aspects, the role and impact of the media and the effect of the crisis on our democracy and its institutions. The forum will feature presentations by several panelists including former Secretary to the CKRC turned politician, PLO Lumumba; Muthoni Wanyeki, Executive Director of the Kenya Human Rights Commission; Mitch Odero of the Media Council; and Betty Maina, Chairperson of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers.

The forum will be followed by a cocktail at the same venue during which the winners of the competition will be announced.

All are welcome to attend. Entry is free.

Picking Up The Pieces Cartoon Competition

Over the last few weeks, Kenya has witnessed post-election violence on an unimaginable scale. As efforts to resolve the political stalemate continue apace, there is need for the Kenyan society to initiate dialogue on the root causes of this violence and also to provide alternative avenues for the people to air their grievances without resorting to force.

The Association of East African Cartoonists (KATUNI) and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) are organizing a cartoon competition entitled “Picking up the Pieces” in hopes of contributing towards the identification of a lasting solution to the problem.

The goals of this competition are to identify the reasons for the violence and propose ways out of the crisis on the basis of the following questions:

1) What are the root causes of the violence?

2) How have our leaders reacted to crisis?

3) What is the way forward?

COMPETITION RULES:

1) Participation in the competition is open to all professional and amateur cartoonists.

2) All entries must include the artist’s address and daytime telephone number.

3) Submitted cartoons are to be either A4-Size (210X297mm) or A3-Size (420X297).

4) Digital copies submitted via email should be 300 dpi resolution and in JPEG format.

5) Cartoons may be either black-and-white or colored.

6) Cartoons advocating ethnic hatred, containing obscene language or scenes of gratuitous violence will not be accepted.

7) The deadline for receiving artworks is Monday 25th February 2008.

8) A jury of experts will select the 3 best cartoons for prize awards. The jury’s decision will be final.

9) The award of the prizes will take place during the opening of the exhibition on 7 March, 2008 at the Goethe Institut on Monrovia St., Nairobi.

10) All entries will be © FES and KATUNI and will not be returned.

THE PRIZES:

- First Prize: Art equipment worth Kshs. 30,000.00

- Second Prize: Art equipment worth Kshs. 20,000.00

- Third Prize: Art equipment worth Kshs. 10,000.00

Cartoons may be sent via email to

katuni@gmail.com

and should be in JPEG format with a resolution of 300dpi.

Original artworks should be marked “Picking up the Pieces Cartoon Competition” may be sent via post to:

Patrick Gathara, P.O Box 3613-00200, Nairobi

or dropped off at Communicating Artists Limited, 3rd floor, Revlon Towers, Kimathi Street, Nbi.

The WOT?

The WOT? is an international cartoon exhibition organised by the Association of East African Cartoonists (KATUNI). The exhibition focuses on cartoonists' impressions of the global War On Terror (WOT) and is open to all. Submitted artworks are on display on http://thewotexhibition.blogspot.com/ and will also be exhibited at a venue to be announced later in Nairobi, Kenya.

If you would like to participate in the exhibition, please email your cartoons to katuni@gmail.com

Emailed cartoons should be in JPEG format and should have a resolution of at least 300 dpi.

You may also send your cartoons via post to:

Patrick Gathara

P.O. Box 3613-00200 (City Square)

Nairobi, Kenya

(Note: Original artworks submitted via post will not be returned.)

The deadline for receiving submissions is 31st May, 2007.

French Muslims Sue Over Cartoons

From the BBC:

Two French Muslim organisations are suing the magazine Charlie Hebdo for printing cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammad.
The Muslim groups charge the magazine with "insulting a group of people on the basis of religion".
Charlie Hebdo reprinted Danish cartoons that provoked a violent backlash in the Muslim world a year ago.
Supporters of the magazine, including some French Muslims, say the trial is a test case for free speech. Read More

In January, a British Muslim was found guilty of soliciting murder during a London rally against cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammad. Umran Javed, 27, of Birmingham, was also convicted of stirring up racial hatred. He told a crowd of hundreds at the February 2006 protest: "Bomb, bomb Denmark, bomb, bomb USA."

In December 2006, Yemen Observer editor Muhammad Assadi was fined for reprinting controversial cartoons. Mr Assadi said he wanted to show Yemenis how insulting they were. The cartoons were printed in thumbnail sizes and overlaid with a large "X".

Another Yemeni editor, Kamal al-Aalafi, who had been sentenced to a year in jail in November for reprinting the cartoons, has been released on bail and plans to appeal against the sentence. His weekly paper, al-Rai al-Aam, was ordered to be closed for six months.

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has pledged to overturn any jail sentences handed to journalists.

Fallout from the Danish Cartoon Controversy

A Yemeni court has sentenced Kamal Ali Al-Aalafi, Editor-in-Chief of Al-Rai Al-Aam weekly, to one year in jail and shut down his newspaper for republishing the Prophet Mohammed cartoons, which were first published by a Danish newspaper, thus arousing tensions and rage among Muslims worldwide.

Under the verdict, Al-Aalafi also is banned from writing for six months. The court justified its verdict against the newspaper and its editor for disgracing the prophet by republishing the cartoons. Read More

In a related development, Yemeni Observer editor-in-chief Mohammed Al-Asaadi has been released after journalists staged a sit-in at the office of the General Attorney on 6th December. The journalists were protesting hid detention following a court verdict against him, which condemned him for republishing some of the Danish cartoons, and ordered him to pay a fine of YR500,000 to the states fund. Read More

According to the Yemen Mirror, The Yemeni Observer was suspended for three months and Al-Asaadi charged with insulting the Prophet after the paper reprinted three of the controversial drawings, in black and white and reduced size, with large X’s overlaid on each, as part of multiple-page coverage of the controversy. The editors wanted to denounce the cartoons, explain to the mainly foreign readership of the Yemen Observer why they elicited outrage among Muslims, and to show readers exactly what was under protest. At least 14 private lawyers recruited by Sheik Abdul-Majid Zindani, chairman of Islah Shura Council, filed complaints against al-Asaadi and called, at least indirectly, for his execution.

Throughout the Muslim world, a number of publications printed versions of one or more of the cartoons for various reasons: to denounce them, to mobilize protests against them, or to appeal against the violence they spurred. Many of the publications were targeted as a result, becoming easy prey for governments seeking a pretext to retaliate against the press, curry favor with Islamists, and deflect public attention from domestic problems. but nowhere was the reaction as severe as in Yemen.

Worldwide, the Committee to Protect Journalists found that at least nine publications were closed or suspended and 10 journalists were criminally charged in response to the cartoon controversy. Punitive actions, including censorship orders and harassment, were reported in 13 countries including:

Algeria : Two editors criminally charged.

Belarus : One newspaper suspended.

Denmark : Jyllands-Posten threatened with bomb attack.

India : One editor criminally charged.

Jordan : Two editors criminally charged.

Lebanon : Journalists assaulted during demonstration against cartoons.

Malaysia : Two newspapers suspended.

Morocco : Government organizes demonstrations against newspaper.

Russia : Two newspapers closed.

Saudi Arabia : Newspaper suspended.

South Africa : Censorship orders issued against two newspapers.

Syria : Writer criminally charged for commentary.

Yemen : Three newspapers suspended. Four journalists criminally charged.

Except where noted, the actions came in response to publishing versions of one or more of the cartoons.

Tom and Jerry Creator Dies

(Hat-Tip: Nakeel) Joe Barbera, half of the Hanna-Barbera animation team that produced such beloved cartoon characters as Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear and the Flintstones, died Monday, a Warner Bros. spokesman said. He was 95. Read More

INTERNATIONAL DON QUICHOTTE CARTOON CONTEST

Each day, millions of illegal immigrants brave the elements and endure hunger and suffering at the hands of human traffickers in their endeavour move to other countries. Many have even drowned in the sea in this attempt. The international community's seeming inability to find a durable solution only serves to increase these kinds of tragedies.

Don Quichotte (a bi-lingual Turko-German cartoon magazine whose goals are to establish a connection between Turkish and world cartooning, explore global topics from a different point of view and to mount informative cartoon exhibitions) is holding an international cartoon competition in hopes of contributing towards the identification of a lasting solution to the problem.

The goals of this competition are to identify the reasons for immigration and analyse the problems of the immigrants on the basis of two questions:

1) Why do people decide to leave their country and settle in another?
2) Why do countries treat immigrants differently from their own citizens?

COMPETITION RULES:
1) Participation in the competition is possible only via Internet. Please send your cartoons to donquichotte@donquichotte.at or donquichotte@gmx.net
2) Only works that have not been previously published or entered into other competitions will be accepted.
3) Submitted cartoons are to be A3-Size, 300 dpi resolution and in JPEG format. They may be either black-and-white or colored.
4) The submitted cartoonswill be first published the web pages of the -Don Quichotte- under the column (today/Bugün).
5) The closing date of the competition is 28 February 2007.
6)The jury, drawn from artists living in Germany, writers, politicians and journalists (both immigrants and Germans) will evaluate the works between 10th and 15th March, 2007. Results will be published on 31 March 2007.
7) The award of the prize will take place during the opening of the exhibition in April in Esslingen (the precise venue and date will be communicated at a later time).

THE PRIZES:
- First Prize: € 1,000, 00
- Second Prize: € 750,00
- Third Prize: € 500,00
- Special Prizes (given by German institutions and federations active in this area)

THE JURY:
- Marlene Pohle (President general of FECO, cartoonist in Stuttgart)
- Valeri Kurtu (Cartoonist, Berlin)
- Derek Easterby (Cartoonist- Nürnberg)
- Steffen Jahsnowski Herschel(Cartoonist- Berlin)
- Selma Aykan Emiroğlu (Cartoonist, Soprano Munich)
- Muhsin Omurca (Cabaretist, Cartoonist Ulm)
- Erdoğan Karayel (Cartoonist DQ Publisher Stuttgart)
- Hayati Boyacioglu (Cartoonist, Journalist- Berlin) ´
- Ismail Çoban (Painter-Wuppertal)
- Mahmut Celayir (Painter-Stuttgart)
- Sinasi Dikmen (Author Cabaretist Frankfurt)
- Mehmet Ünal (Photography artist- Mannheim)
- Gürsel Köksal (journalist, ATGB chairman Frankfurt)
- Ozan Ceyhun (Politician SPD-Berlin)

Tabriz 6th International Cartoon Contest - Kings

Regulations:

1- Theme: Kings

2- Number of works: Max. 5

3- Size: Max. A3

4- Only the originals of the works will be accepted.

5- Deadline: February 4, 2007

6- Works will be judged on February 20, 2007.

7- Prizes:
First winner: 1000 Euro
Second winner: 500 Euro
Third winner: 250 Euro
10 cartoons will be appreciated and awarded.

8- The reverse side of the cartoon should bear the surname, forename, complete address, email, and telephone number of the entrant. A photo should be added. Only the works which are received by the organization's secretariat in Tabriz by February 4, 2007, will be taken into account.

9- A selection of received works will be displayed on www.tabrizcartoons.com. Results also will be announced there.

10- An exhibition of cartoons will be held on March 1, 2007 in MirAli Tabrizi Gallery, Yasemi Gallery, and Tajrobeh Hall.

11- Address:
Tabriz Cartoon Association,
Tabriz Art & Culture Center, 29 Bahman Blvd.,
Tabriz, IRAN

GADO at the UN

Daily Nation cartoonist Godfrey "GADO" Mwampembwa this week was at the UN headquarters in New York to participate in a seminar entitled "Cartooning for Peace: The Responsibility of Political Cartoonists?" The seminar, which was organised by the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI) in partnership with the Emory University’s Claus M. Halle Institute for Global Learning, was opened by UN Secretary-General Koffi Anan.

In his address to the seminar, Mr. Anan described cartoons as an" important form of social and political commentary." He also noted that cartoons can cause offense remarking, "that is part of their point." However, he stated his opposition to state regulation of cartoonists' work saying: "Even if we decided to ban all cartoons that are deeply offensive to large numbers of people, we would still be asking the state to make some very subjective judgements and embarking on the slippery slope of censorship." He stated his preference for leaving the decision on what to publish in the hands of editors and cartoonists themselves saying this involved self censorship, "excercised... in a spirit of genuine respect for other people's feelings, not out of fear."

Mr. Anan also warned against "cartoon wars" in which one group publishes cartoons that are offensive to another in retaliation to offenses it believes itself to have suffered. This was a veiled reference to the exhibition of Holocaust cartoons organised by Iran's biggest-selling newspaper, Hamshahri, in retaliation for the cartoons of Prophet Mohammed published in Danish newspapers. During his visit to Iran in September, Mr. Anan raised concerns with Iranian officials over the exhibition.

The New York seminar is part of the “Unlearning Intolerance” series, launched by DPI, and was the brainchild of French cartoonist Plantu (Jean Plantureux). He says the idea for the gathering was born in 1991, when Plantu met then Palestinian leader Yassar Arafat, who drew the Star of David for one of Plantu’s drawings and signed it. “At that time, Yasser Arafat could not say, ‘I recognize the State of Israel,’ and yet, with a blue felt tip pen he drew the Star of David on the Israeli flag,” says the cartoonist. The following year, Plantu traveled to Israel and convinced then-Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Shimon Peres to sign the same drawing. It was the first time that signatures from both the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization had been affixed to the same document prior to the 1993 Oslo Accords. “Since that time, I have thought a great deal about the role of newspaper cartoonists,” Plantu said.

Participating cartoonists came from countries around the world including Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Iran, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Palestine, Switzerland, and the United States.

You can watch archived video of the proceedings here.

Yemen editor 'faces death calls'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4786322.stm

Yemeni lawyers have called for a newspaper editor to be sentenced to death for showing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, his paper says.

Muhammad al-Asadi was arrested after his publication, the Yemen Observer, showed the Danish cartoons in February.

He denies the charges of offending Islam, under which he is being tried.

The English-language newspaper has had its licence to publish suspended, although its staff have continued to produce material online.

Lawyers leading a civil case against publishers of the cartoons - in addition to the public case - cited precedents from Muslim history when the prophet was insulted by a woman and then praised her killer.

Prosecutors have reportedly requested that the Yemen Observer be closed permanently and have its property and assets confiscated.

The trial was adjourned until 22 March.

Here We Go Again

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6033075.stm

Denmark rocked by new cartoon row

The Danish prime minister has denounced the drawing of new cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad by members of an anti-immigration party's youth wing.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen intervened in an apparent effort to prevent a repeat of the widespread protests over similar cartoons a year ago.

Danish People's Party activists were shown on TV drawing the images, which were condemned in the Muslim world.

Iran and Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood said the new cartoons insulted Islam.

Iran protested to the Danish government on Sunday, saying it was "deplorable that the extremist elements in Danish society have attempted to sabotage Denmark's relations with the Islamic countries once again".

'Tasteless' drawings

The activists were filmed at a summer camp, drinking, singing and taking part in a competition to draw images of Muhammad, including one depicting him as a camel with beer bottles as humps.

The publication a year ago of newspaper cartoons - one depicting Muhammad with a bomb in his turban - led to violent protests in which more than 50 people died in Muslim countries.

Mr Rasmussen, who insisted then that he could not control independent media, condemned the latest drawings as "tasteless" and "unacceptable".

He said the activists' behaviour "in no way represents the way the Danish people... view Muslims or Islam".

Danish Muslim leaders, who last year travelled abroad to rally support for their protests, said they would not be provoked by the latest incident, the BBC's religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott reports.

Iranian Daily Shut Down over Cartoon

The Washington Post reports that the above cartoon, titled "The Other Rules of the Game," precipitated the closure of the Iranian national daily Sharq for "publishing articles insulting to religious, political and national figures and fomenting discord in violation of orders of the Supreme National Security Council."

According to the Paris-based Iran Press Service, "most Iranian political analysts, including some of the journalists at the paper said the most important thing that the Government did not like was a cartoon ... showing a chess board where a horse and a donkey, with a halo of light around its head are debating the regime's handling of nuclear issue with the West."

Though cartoonists say the "halo" is actually an effect to separate the animals heads, it seems that censors at the Iranian judiciary have made a link between the donkey in the cartoon and comments by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last year that he felt a heavenly beam of light embracing him during a speech at the United Nations General Assembly. Ahmadinejad made the remarks during an exchange with a cleric that was captured on videotape and circulated over the internet. You can view an excerpt here.

Can You Take the 24 Hour Comics Challenge?

On October 7, hundreds of cartoonists will gather at different venues around the world to participate in the 24 Hour Comics Day challenge. The aim? To create a complete 24 page comic book in 24 continuous hours. That means everything: Story, finished art, lettering, colors (if you want 'em), paste-up, everything! No sketches, designs, plot summaries or any other kind of direct preparation can precede the 24 hour period though indirect preparation such as assembling tools, reference materials, food, music etc. is fine. Once pen hits paper, the clock starts ticking. 24 hours later, the pen lifts off the paper, never to descend again. Even proofreading has to occur in the 24 hour period. Computer-generated comics are fine of course, same principles applying.

The 24 hour comics challenge was created in 1990 by Scott McCloud, leading comics theoretician and author of Understanding Comics and Reinventing Comics. Between 1990 and 2004, people were doing 24 hour comics on their own or in small gatherings for more than a decade. However, we estimated that the number of people who have done them roughly doubled on 2004's inaugural 24 Hour Comics Day, and added a greater number to the list in 2005, with 2006 looking to be bigger still. In 2004, over 500 cartoonists were at work in 57 event locations while in 2005 the event had grown to encompass over 800 cartoonists were at work in 70 event locations. Many more participated from home. This year, official events are planned in 91 locations in 16 countries aropund the world.

While most participants are amateurs, many pro cartoonists take part as well. Past years have seen participation from such big-name artists as former X-Men artist Paul Smith, popular online cartoonist Scott Kurtz (pvponline.com), and Tone Rodriguez (currently working on Conan). While some participants may harbour ambitions of a career as a professional cartoonist, many others are just having fun by trying it.

If any cartoonists in Kenya are interested in participating, please send me an email and we can see how we can organise a venue. For more information on the event, please click here.

Engineering cartoons needed

calestous_juma@harvard.edu is lookingfor politically-correct cartoons that can illustrate a talk on the role of engineering in development. Any help will be appreciated. Please pass this on to others who might be able to help as well.

“MAKE ROOM! YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD!”

The creative Association of Cartoonists “Sabantuy” invites you to take part in a new cartoon contest:
“MAKE ROOM! YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD!”

DEADLINE
Postmark deadline for the entries is October, 15th 2006.

PARTICIPATION
The organizers of the International cartoon contest are Mass media Agency “Tatmedia” of Tatarstan Republic, the magazine of satire and humour “CHAYAN” (Scorpion) and the creative Association of Cartoonists “Sabantuy”.

The contest is open to everyone regardless of nationality, age, sex, or profession.

THEME
1. “MAKE ROOM! YOU ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD!” (cartoons
(comics and posters against intolerance, misunderstanding, Nazism, struggle between different confessions/faiths).
2. “FACES, WHICH ARE...” (caricatures of known persons, world stars of politics, art and sport, which have pleased, surprised, afflicted us lately).

ENTRIES
Conditions of entry:
1. All entries must be original cartoons. Framed works will not be accepted.
2. Entries can be either black and white or color.
3. Please write your name, date of birth and the address on the back
side of the drawing.
4. The works should be accompanied by a completed entry form, a short CV and a photograph. (Please contact the organisers for an entry form).
5. Maximum 5 entries should be submitted.
6. Size: from 200 x 300 mm to 300 x 400 mm.

DEADLINE
Postmark deadline for the entries is October, 15th 2006.

ADDRESS
420141, Kazan, P/box 168,
Republic of Tatarstan
RUSSIA
E-mail: sabantuy@rambler.ru

PRIZES AND AWARDS
Grand Prix: 1000 EUR
Honour Prizes: Three honour prizes, each 500 EUR
Special Prizes of organizers and sponsors.
Prizes are handed over in each nomination.

EXHIBITION
The exhibition will take place in Kazan in November 2006.

OTHER CONDITIONS
Authors of works that qualify to the exhibition are given a presentation copy of the
exhibition catalogue. The works will not be returned. They will be retained by the organizers and will be included in the Museum of Cartoons of Republic of Tatarstan.

Israel-Iran Cartoon War

A Danish paper publishes a cartoon that mocks Muslims.
An Iranian paper responds with a Holocaust cartoons contest -
- Now a group of Israelis announce their own anti-Semitic cartoons contest!

In the wake of the Danish Mohammed cartoons controversy, Iran’s biggest-selling newspaper, Hamshahri, in February organised a competition to find the 12 "best" cartoons about the Holocaust. The aim, according to graphics editor Farid Mortazavi, was to test out how committed Europeans were to the concept freedom of expression. "The Western papers printed these sacrilegious cartoons on the pretext of freedom of expression, so let’s see if they mean what they say and also print these Holocaust cartoons."

Not to be out done, in the same month Eyal Zusman, actor and playwrite, and Amitai Sanderovich (Sandy), a graphic artist from Tel-Aviv, Israel, organised an anti-Semitic cartoons contest- the Israeli Anti-Semitic Cartoon contest - this time drawn by Jews themselves! According to Sandy, “We’ll show the world we can do the best, sharpest, most offensive Jew hating cartoons ever published! No Iranian will beat us on our home turf!”

Now these two contests seem to have, almost predictably, run into problems. CBS News, citing AP, reports that during his visit to Iran last week, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan raised concerns with officials over the exhibition of the Holocaust cartoons (which featured 204 entries from Iran and other countries including the USA, Turkey and Indonesia) at Tehran's Caricature House. with . According to his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi, Annan brought up the exhibit, which runs till Sept. 13, in talks with Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. "We should avoid anything that incites hatred". The U.N. chief had not seen the Holocaust cartoons but "from what he heard, he would find them pretty distasteful, as he did the Danish cartoons about the Prophet Muhammad, which he strongly condemned at the time," Fawzi said.

Sandy also writes that the Tel-Aviv Comics, Caricatures and Animation festival which ended last week and which had initially offered to include Zusman and Sandy's exhibition, withdrew the offer "due to content." Gavriel Fiske of the Jerusalem Post reports that one of the judges for the Israeli Anti-Semitic Cartoon contest, Pullitzer Prize winner Art Spiegleman found the cartoons "as blood-curdling as the contest literally asked for, but if one erases the Jewish names below the cartoons they pretty much just reinforce the stereotypes they mock." The cartoons can still be viewed on the official site gallery.

According to Moshe Goralli, writing in Haaretz, the festival however included a special session - entitled "God on the Line" - that focused on the question of whether it is permissible to laugh at God or at least include him in caricatures. It also featured an exhibition of Israeli cartoons on the recent Israel-Hizbolla conflict. According to Reuters, depictions of the Hizbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, ranged from him using children as human shields to biting the boot of an Israeli soldier and disputing Lebanese territory with Israel's military over a map of the region.

While much of the artwork was directed at Nasrallah, the cartoonists also took swipes at Israeli military leaders. An Israeli boy who came to see the exhibit said one of the cartoons summed it up for him. It depicted Israeli and Lebanese soldiers both with their pants down trying to see who had the bigger "rocket". Festival director Nissim Hizkiyahu said: "We asked the cartoonists to give their point of view, their special point of view, about this war and they gave us special comics and cartoons about the events, not only about Hassan Nasrallah, but around the war and how the people reacted to this war."

Nairobi +21 Cartoon Competition Re-advertised

African Women’s Development and Communication Network(FEMNET) in partnership with the Association of East African Cartoonists (KATUNI) are organising a cartoon exhibition and competition to mark the Nairobi+21 Conference which is to be held in October. FEMNET in partnership with KATUNI aims to promote an appreciation of cartoons as communication tools for awareness creation and generation of debate on gender issues.

What is Nairobi +21?
21 years ago, the first international women’s conference in Africa was held in Nairobi, Kenya. The Conference for the first time afforded women of the South an opportunity to organise and influence international commitments on women. The result of the Conference was the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies (NFLS) that later informed the Beijing Platform for
Action (BPFA).

Nairobi +21 initiative offers an opportunity to reflect on achievements and what has changed for women over the last two decades. It also hopes to invigorate debate around gender issues on the continent, hold governments accountable for the obligations they undertook on behalf of women and enable the youth identify with the goals of the NFLS and BPFA. For more information on Nairobi +21 click here.

Exhibition Theme: Reflections on Nairobi +21
Cartoons should focus on the main themes of NFLS - equality, development and peace. Cartoonists are free to pick on a sub-theme of their choice from employment, health, education, communications, science and technology, and environment. Creativity from the
cartoonists is encouraged in the interpretation of the exhibition theme.
Cartoonists can submit work that highlights their impressions of achievements and what has changed for women over the last 21 years. Caricatures of prominent women leaders in Africa and women leaders at community level can also be submitted. Entries from women cartoonists are encouraged.

Entries
Original entries Should be marked "Katuni exhibition"
and sent to:
Association of East African Cartoonists
P.O. Box 3613-00200 (City Square), Nairobi

Or dropped off at
Communicating Artists Ltd.
3rd Floor, Revlon Plaza,
Kimathi Street, Nairobi

Artworks may also be sent via email to
katuni@gmail.com

The new deadline for receiving artworks is 30th September, 2006

The Prize
The top prize is a year’s subscription to FEMNET (membership entitles you to receive FEMNET
publications, e-newsletters, and participation in the General Assembly), the chance to be a guest cartoonist for FEMNET publications with a regional reach, and a bonus cash prize of Kshs. 1,500

The first and second runner up will receive cash prize of Kshs. 1,000 and Kshs. 500 respectively.

All winners will have their work featured on the FEMNET website.

Judges
The public attending the Nairobi +21 Conference on July 28, 2006 will be invited to pick the winning entries. Voting will be by secret ballot. The cartoonist that receives most votes, wins. Voting will be based on work that contributes to promoting non-discrimination, diversity, and equality of women and men.

FEMNET reserves the right to use all material submitted for the exhibition in any way and media, and to reproduce it for purposes of its work on women’s rights, gender and development.

16th EURO-KARTOENALE - KRUISHOUTEM - 2007:

EURO-KARTOENALE KRUISHOUTEM - BELGIUM is organizing the 16th edition of the biannual cartoon contest EURO-KARTOENALE who's theme is "Lock and Keys".
Please click here for further details on the competition in English. From that page you can download an entry form.

Karua goes after Cartoonists (again!)

Freedom of the press is once again under attack in Kenya. On June 18th, 2006 the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Martha Karua wrote to the Daily Nation and Gado, threatening to sue over a cartoon (above) published in the Nation on the same day. According to her, the cartoon "repeats the falsehood peddled by your sister station N.T.V. [and] is not only baseless but malicious and calculated to injure my reputation, credit and standing of a Minister of Justice, lawyer and politician." This is the second time she is threatening to take legal action against GADO and the third time she has taken exception to cartoonists' portrayal of her.

On 9th February, 2006 her lawyers S.W. Ndirangu and company wrote to GADO and the Nation regarding the above cartoon which she "interpreted to represent a press conference held by her and her colleagues"(this is despite the fact that nowhere in the cartoon does GADO identify the female character in his cartoon as Karua. Even if he did, surely the cartoon is satirical and not meant to be taken literally). The letter goes on to say that the cartoon is "deliberately misleading" and threatens legal redress if GADO and the Nation do not "adhere to the rules of accuracy and fairness in reporting".


Previously, on 25th April 2004, she had written to The Standard complaining about the above caricature which had been published in the weekly satirical pullout Penknife. In the letter, Karua contends that the humorous caricature depicted her as “unfair to the media, which is unfair and derogatory to me.”

“You show me as I confront the media, I am standing on live wire with 10,000 degrees centigrade hot (sic),” she complains. “This caricature is not only derogatory and intended to injure my credit and reputation, but is also intended to trash my right to pursue legal redress. It is an aggravation of the various libelous matters I am pursuing you for in court, and constitutes fresh libel,” says the Gichugu MP. The minister also took issue with the headline, ‘Boiling Hot,’ and claimed that suggestions in the Penknife that she has teamed “up with my colleague the honourable Minister for Information to muzzle the press when the truth of the matter is that I am pursuing my rights in court” are “false and malicious.”

KATUNI has written to the minister expressing our grave concern over the threats. While we acknowledge her right to pursue legal action, it is our opinion that the threats are an attempt to intimidate and muzzle cartoonists and the press in general. The Media Council of Kenya has mechanisms for sorting out allegations of press misconduct and we urge Ms. Karua to address her complaints there.

Cartoonists Rights Network, International (to which KATUNI is affiliated) has also written to the minister reminding her that Kenya is a signatory to the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights which guarantees the freedoms of speech and expression and that an editorial cartoonist's job is to "provoke commentary dialogue and opinions. They do not report facts; they are commentators, an integral part of the balance of power between a government and its citizens in any democracy."

KATUNI urges all who believe in the virtues of a free press to write to Ms. Karua and register their objections to her behaviour.