WASHINGTON, 5 August 2006 — The media has every right to express their point of view. Some call it freedom of the press, but it can be unpleasant sometimes.
So why did a Palestinian newspaper cartoon depict US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pregnant with an armed monkey? The recent illustration of Rice, which were first reported by the website World Net Daily, were discovered while Rice was traveling in the Middle East.
Media outlets overseen by Palestinian Authority have been using racist rhetoric in their reports, referring to the American representative as the “raven” and “black spinster.”
The cartoon was published last week in Al-Quds, Palestinian daily newspaper, depicts Rice pregnant with a monkey. “Rice speaks about the birth of a new Middle East,” the cartoon’s caption reads, referring to the secretary’s recent remarks about the “birth pangs” of the region.
Up until the publication of this cartoon Washington had regarded Al Quds as a moderate newspaper.
According to a translation by Palestinian Media Watch, the PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida detailed recent Ramallah protests in which Rice was described as a “raven” who “brings only destruction.”
Al-Hayat Al-Jadida featured pictures of ralliers brandishing anti-Rice placards, some reading, “Murderer Rice go to Hell” and “Get out.” One placard had Rice drinking the blood of dead babies and stating, “I need more blood.”
The US State Department dismissed them as “ugly attacks,” and said: “Criticism comes with public service”. “We encourage development of a free press but along with those freedoms come certain responsibilities,” State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters. “Secretary Rice is focused on doing her job. She knows that the United States is doing the right thing.”
The spokesman also said Rice “has a great working relationship” with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and highly respects him. “This is truly ugly,” said a former senior aide to Madeleine Albright, Secretary of State in the Clinton Administration. “It’s unfortunate and not reflective of the Palestinian people, and they should be upset about it.
