Danish anti-war posters to hit Iraq
Thursday 15 September 2005, 20:28 Makka Time, 17:28 GMT
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Over 1000 posters will appear around Baghdad on Friday
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Two Danish artists have decided on registering their opposition to the war in Iraq on the walls of Baghdad itself.
From
Friday, over 1000 posters are to hit the most populous and important
quarters of the capital, including the diplomatic Green Zone in the
very heart of the city.
Artist Claus Rohland, 50, explained to Aljazeera.net
why he and fellow artist Jan Egesborg, 40, had got involved and what
message they hoped to send to ordinary Iraqis.
"We as Danes are part of this so-called coalition and
are taking part in this war. But Denmark is a very small country that
has not been at war for many years. We need to question what we are
doing and what is happening," Rohland said.
"None of the warring parties - neither US-led
forces nor Iraqi rebels - present a solution to this war. The
ultimate solution needs to come from ordinary people. It may sound
naive, but we would encourage people to keep faith in themselves that a
final solution rests with them."
Controversial
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Poster reads: Trust In Propaganda
Keep Life Complicated |
At first glance, the three posters look extremely
controversial. One says Kill Your Enemy, another reads Trust in
Propaganda, while a third suggests Support the Wrong One.
However, all three posters end with the phrase "and
keep life complicated." Iraqi civilian Amin al-Amidi told Aljazeera.net
what the posters meant to him and why he had agreed to stick all 1000
up around Baghdad.
"The message is as clear as crystal. It is communicating to Iraqi people that they will have to follow the path of moderation
and neither believe every rumour nor kill in some kind of wild revenge
or rely on others to solve our problems," al-Amidi said.
"Iraqis have suffered an awful lot over the last 35
years, I am willing to do anything to help the situation. Tomorrow,
I'll put up these posters that encourage a calm and calculated answer
to the chaos that is happening around us."
Fame
Rohland is no stranger to controversy. With some of
his work featured in UK newspaper the Guardian and in the German
Frankfurter Allgemeine, the artist shot to fame with his neo-Nazi-like
posters.
"Yes, the neo-Nazi campaign was notorious – but
it's ideology was quite clear. The Second World War was won but the
Nazi ideology has not been killed off."
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Support the Wrong One [Faction]
Keep life complicated | "Initially
people were angered at the posters, which at first they thought
supported neo-Nazism before a closer inspection. I was glad when it
made people angry with neo-Nazis."
"This campaign might be softer – for example the
Kill Your Enemy poster does not feature weapons or faces – but it is
equally hard-hitting," Rohland concluded.
Both Egesborg, whose background in advertising, and
Rohland are planning a much larger poster art exhibition at the Danish
Museum of Arts and Crafts on 6 October.
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