Femen: the topless revolution

Breasts Feed Revolution

The protest movement that started back in 2008 in Kiev, Ukraine, under the name of FEMEN, has become one of the most recognisable brands worldwide.
One thing is clear about this group of young women activists: they pull no punches when it comes to make themselves heard.
Thanks to their trademark approach, which mainly involves organising topless protests against religious institutions, world leaders, international institutions (eg. FIFA), embassies and other targets, FEMEN have also alienated many people, not only from the (predictably) more conservative sectors of society but also from more supposedly liberal and progressive people who dismiss these tactics as counterproductive and even as 'racist colonial feminism'. Feminist groups and Muslim women, among others, have been very critical of FEMEN's strategies.
Nudity, it would appear, still makes people uncomfortable; women's nudity even more so.
Facebook had recently had its moment of glory (again!) when it decided to block FEMEN's account after accusing the activist group of 'promoting pornography and prostitution', something that smacks of double standards.
Either Facebook can't cope with the sight of women shouting and exposing the hypocrisy of a fundamentally corrupted moral system or- perhaps more likely- they find FEMEN's message hard to swallow (perhaps bowing to the pressure coming from high above?).
But they continue-unfazed- their mission, caring very little about what the breast-phobics have to say and if there is something I admire about them is their determination and courage. Their ability to expose the powerful (men) who allow themselves to preach morality is outstanding and remarkable.
You may or may not agree with their ways of protest but if there is something clear about the emergence of FEMEN is that they have brought back to the table feminism and what does being a feminist mean in the 21st century. And just for that, I think, they must be heard and respected.

The Mau Mau Uprising

Fighting colonialism

The long shadow of colonialism was still very present last week in Nairobi when William Hague, the British Foreign Secretary, apologised  for the atrocities committed against members of the Kenyan resistance movement known as the Mau Mau in the 1950s on behalf of the British government.
This was a great victory for those 200 elderly members of the Kikuyu people who travelled to the Kenyan capital and, no doubt, the first of many other similar cases in which the UK will have to apologise and compesate financially victims of similar cases of torture and ill-treatment.

The Mau Mau Rebellion was an anti-colonial movement that fought the British in Kenya; like many other African nationalistic movements of that time, their aim was to send the white colonisers back to Europe and take their own destiny in their hands as they had become politically aware of a situation that was oppressing them in their own native land.
By applying the old 'divide and rule' technique, the British were able to undermine the Mau Mau, so widespread support for their cause was never really achieved.
The rebellion was finally crushed by 1956 but the way for a process that would lead to the eventual  Kenyan independence had been somehow paved with this uprising whose cause and brutal treatment received is now acknowledged.
It has taken 60  long years for a senior member of the British government to apologise, but future expressions of regret will be heard again.

Striking where it hurts

Taking a stand

There are few topics that bring so much controversy as the Israel-Palestine endless dispute; whether it be an article, a comment or a gesture, it's bound to create a heated and - in many an occasion- aggressive debate that very rarely becomes a constructive exchange that may somehow bring closer both sides, or at least some understanding.
The boycott of an Israeli conference earlier this month by one of the world's leading scientists as a protest for Israel's treatment of Palestinians was therefore the kind of political stand that would not leave anyone indifferent; and, of course, it didn't.
As predicted, the furore caused by the Cambridge University Professor was extraordinary; arguments on both sides tried to make their point and show how Hawking was right/wrong.
This is not the first time a well-known figure chooses to publicly condemn Israel for its behaviour regarding Palestine; and it won't be the last one.
What perhaps sets this protest apart is the fact that Stephen Hawking was always considered as a brilliant mind who rarely intervened in politics; that someone who is widely respected for his scientific achievements as well as his  fight against a degenerative disease decides to pull out of an academic conference in Jerusalem was perhaps an unexpected move.
By doing so, Hawking has brought to the table the old debate on the relevance/appropriateness of a boycott to Isreal,and  most particularly in this case, the academic boycott.
While I'm not 100% sure of the effectiveness of an academic boycott of Israeli per se, I can clearly see why Hawking decided not to rub shoulders with Shimon Peres, Israel's President, at a conference.
The debate is out there;unfortunately, there won't be a negotiated solution to the conflict any time soon (in my opinion, anyway) but Hawking's unequivocal gesture should make people think.

Angel's share

Distilling dreams of a better future in the Highlands

You may not associate Ken Loach with comedy but his latest -and brilliant- film Angel's share made me laugh out loud. After exploring the underworld and dirty businesses that Western companies undertake in post-war Iraq, Loach has turned to a familiar place,Scotland, and more particularly that utterly amazing ( I must confess, I love it) city that is Glasgow.
What does not change though, is Loach's and Paul Laverty's humanistic approach; in a miserable world there is room for poetic justice, those little victories that defeat the routine and brigthen up the lives of those who are always pushed aside and denied that opportunity that may change things for the better.
Focusing on a group of young Glasgewians sentenced to community payback who find their own angel in Harry, their caring and sweet supervisor, the film follows their trail to the Highlands in their pursue of a very rare whisky that is going to be auctioned; whisky auctions, like art auctions, are for the extremely rich, capable of paying outrageous amounts of money for that special sip.
However, things don't quite turn up as expected for the mighty-yet blissfully ignorant- millionaires.
Loach's eye is once again more interested in the fate of the unlikely heroes of a party they weren't invented to.It's their time to get their part of the pie.
The beautiful title of this upbeat film refers to the 2% of whisky that evaporates from the casks each year.
Played by non-professional actors, Angel's share is very well performed and very funny, far from the gloomy films that we saw in the past. There is hope and it must be shared.

Thatcherites

Thacherites by name, your faults I proclaim (Billy Bragg)

Margaret Thatcher's death last week has been met with countless debates and exchanges on the net and elsewhere, most of them pretty heated, to say the least.Hardly surprising for such a controversial figure, whose legacy still lingers on and whose ability to irritate and charm- depending on the side of the fence you were on- was peerless.
What most people seem to agree on, though, is the fact that the doctrines  she started in the early 80s are very  much alive and well and a whole army of Thacherites have assumed the lady's teachings with gusto.
Beyond the way Thacher's approach changed the Conservative Party itself, I think that it's hard to ignore the influence she had on the (New) Labour Party too; when the latter won the elections in 1997, they simply decided to continue the same path, albeit with a softer approach and with more social policies.
In fact, Thacherites became Blairites, and the rest is history...
The world will witness the Iron Lady's funeral this week, on a broadcast beamed to the world and with all the state honours reserved for its leaders; we won't bury, however, the policies she so stubbornly and arrogantly advocated.

Cartooning for Peace

No laughing matter

Cartoon: such a simple yet wonderful word, vibrant and magic, evocative and innocent. Think of this word  and it is quite likely that it will immediately bring images of your favourite cartoons, those that made you laugh out loud, think and even cry. Think of a world without cartoonists and...well, I won't even dare.
Cartoonists, armed with their brilliant minds full of ideas and their pens, produce work that for all their simplicity manage to provoke the most varied reactions; sometimes these reactions are quite extreme and we all have in mind cases in which cartoonists land in trouble due to some 'controversial' cartoon.
To support and ensure that cartoonists work remains independent, a fantastic initiative to support and encourage cartoonists was created a few years ago, under the supervision of French cartoonists Plantu (Le Monde) and former UN Secretary General and Nobel Prize winner Kofi Annan.
As you may imagine, Cartooning for Peace (http://www.cartooningforpeace.org/) aims to promote a better understanding between people from different cultures as well as fight and defend cartoonists right to freedom of expression.
This is all more interesting when we think about the massive cultural gap when cartoonists tackle issues related to religion, as the editors of French weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo know too well, whose headquarters were bombed after publishing a special issue featuring cartoons of Mohammed.

I was reminded of this whole issue concerning cartoonists' rights and freedoms while reading the graphic novel An Iranian Metamorphosis by Mana Neyestani; a personal account of the hell he went through after publishing a seemingly innocent cartoon and then becoming the scapegoat for a tyranical  and farcical regime.
Neyestani's story is a timely reminder of the prospects faced by cartoonists all over the world.

A Kafkaesque nightmare

Searching for sugar man

Sixto Rodriguez: alive and well

Each time the yearly ritual associated with the Oscar Awards ceremony takes centre stage and we are, invariably, flooded with the usual PR machine that sorrounds this, in my  humble opinion, uninteresting and boring event, I tend to ignore it. I'm aware that, in doing so, I may miss some interesting and even good films that are either awarded or shortlisted by the Academy.
It is the case with this year's award for best documentary; I had been told about Searching for Sugar Man months ago but it was only a couple of weeks that I managed to watch it.
The story of Sixto Rodriguez, a Detroit-born musician, is really remarkable; and so is the documentary that follows the steps undertaken by two South-African fans, who had set out to confirm the rumours about the dramatic death on stage of Rodriguez. I won't spoil readers on what follows next but, really, I think it's worth finding it out for yourself.
It would be very easy to throw a few clichéd adjectives (heartwarming and uplifting are only two that come to mind straight away). I will refrain from doing so, mainly because much has been written about this documentary.
The fact that Sixto's career has been re-launched thanks to this documentary reminds me of what Ry Cooder had done with that bunch of brilliant Cuban musicians, who rose to a late yet well deserved music stardom  thanks to that stunning album Buena Vista Social Club.
The music featured in the film (Sixto's songs) is equally stunning and one can only wonder how on earth this man didn't achieve global success earlier on his career.