A storm over a cartoon

By brett Submitted on 10 September, 2008 - 05:23

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At present there's quite a heated debate going on in South Africa over a cartoon that appeared in the Sunday Times last Sunday.  The cartoon depicts Jacob Zuma, the president of the ANC and the man most likely to be the next president of South Africa. Zuma is seen undoing his trousers, while people representing the ANC, SACP, Cosatu and the ANC Youth League are holding down a woman, representing the justice system. The men are urging Zuma to rape the woman.

The cartoon has led to an outcry, with a range of views being expressed in  blogs and letters, and calls to radio stations. Some people have called for Zapiro, probably South Africa's most famous and respected political cartoonist, to be fired. Some of these critics have objected to the implied reference to Zuma's trial for rape, saying this is unfair, since he was found not guilty. Others have objected to the rape imagery, saying either that it makes light of rape, or that it is insensitive given the high levels of rape in South Africa.

Some of Zapiro's critics have likened the cartoonist to David Bullard, a columnist for the Sunday Times who was fired a few months back, after a column of his which praised colonialism and made some disparaging remarks about Africans.

I'm not a knee-jerk supporter of the Sunday Times or of any criticism of public figures -- I think the standard of journalism at the Times has been dropping.  Over the last month in particular, it has carried a couple of front page stories, making serious allegations and splashed with enormous banner headlines, that seem to have been poorly sourced and researched. But I do think the Zapiro cartoon can be defended.

Firstly, I think that the critics misunderstand the nature of metaphor, and of political cartoons. Zapiro is not depicting a literal rape. The cartoon uses the shocking, awful, violence and violation of rape as a metaphor -- to comment on what it is that Zuma and his supporters are busy doing to the rule of law in South Africa. Secondly, the cartoon doesn't make light of rape. Just because it's called a 'cartoon', doesn't mean it is trivialising things or trying to be funny. Its message is very serious.

I certainly don't think the comparison to David Bullard is fair. Bullard's remarks were racist, attributing negative qualities to an entire group of people. Zapiro's cartoon crticisises specific public figures and organisations, for specific actions. That criticism might be overly harsh, but it's not racist, and so does not overstep the boundaries of free speech in my view.

Yes, Zapiro's cartoon is very shocking. It elicits a visceral response - it's like a kick in the stomach. But let's just think about the situation it's referring to. Supporters of Jacob Zuma have lately been making some very disturbing comments about the judiciary. Some have gone so far as to call our top judges -- judges with impeccable credentials -- 'counter-revolutionary'.

These comments, which are being repeated over and over again, are steadily undermining faith in, and respect for, our judicial system and thus for the rule of law. The rule of law is the bedrock of democracy. If that goes, society descends into chaos or tyranny. It is very dangerous territory that Zuma's backers have dragged us into, and that I find that infinitely more worrying and disturbing than this cartoon.