From: barnhart@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Mr. Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS:SOMALIA: Media attacked for turning human suffering into a circus
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1992 01:17:58 GMT
Organization: Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A.

Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: SOMALIA: Media attacked for turning human suffering into a circus


an inter press service feature

by angeline oyog
 and victor ego ducrot

paris, dec 14 (ips) -- the sight of packs of journalists
descending on somalia to meet the united states armed forces'
arrival to secure food aid for the country's starving millions has
been widely criticised by the media itself in europe.

many were scandalised by what they described as the ''indecent''
zeal of the media in filming last week's launch of operation
'restore hope'.

one french satirical magazine declared that 'showmalia' had
begun, while the spanish newspaper 'el pais' bore the headline
'lights, camera, invasion.'

in an editorial last week, the french newspaper 'liberation'
warned that the line between presenting information and putting on
a show was extremely thin: ''in mogadishu...  this line was not
only crossed; military and media alike have trampled upon it
savagely,'' it declared.

the joint military/media offensive on the beaches of somalia has
also caused considerable concern among experts in the field of
international affairs and communications who agree that the
operation marked the dawn of a new offensive in the propaganda
war.

in switzerland claude sommer, of the centre for international
studies at lausanne university, warned that the world was
witnessing a new standard in propaganda.

alejandro teitelboim, representative of the non-governmental
american lawyers association (ala), shares sommer's criticism.

according to teitelboim, the arguments used by the united
nations security council to approve armed intervention to provide
'humanitarian' aid in somalia come from the book 'the right to
humanitarian intervention' by french authors mario betati and
bernard kouchner.

''...these two lawyers maintain that the international
community has the right to intervene if lives and human rights are
threatened anywhere in the world,'' says teitelboim.

he points out, however, that the prevailing opinion in the
world's power centres considers 'international community' to be
synonymous with 'dominating countries', and 'nations that threaten
human rights' synonymous with the third world. (more/ips)

somalia: media attacked for turning human suffering into a circus(2)

but the views contained in the betati and kouchner book are
challenged by the algerian lawyer ben bedjaoui.

in his essay 'right to intervention, perspectives and balance',
bedjaoui states that the developed nations do not have the right
but the obligation to intervene in humanitarian terms. and this
not with weapons, but through co-operation to combat under
development, the source of violence.

as it was, the world witnessed the first military landing
broadcast by satelite, and a u.s. source has admitted that this
was planned by the military command and the technicians of the
north american news channel cnn.

in paris jean auroux, president of the french parliamentary
socialist group said he was ''shocked'' to see a military mission
with humanitarian ends apparently ''organised'' to coincide with
u.s. television 'prime-time' broadcasting hours.

according to an international survey headed by communications
expert marie christine buyard of freiburg university in germany,
83 percent of the viewers who watched the broadcast were
sympathetic to greater u.n. intervention.

''the designers of this military propaganda campaign achieved
their goal: to convince the public of the world that the u.n.'s
'operation restore hope' is good and humanitarian. that, thanks to
the [u.s.] marines, the somalis will eat again instead of
perishing in a ridiculous war,'' says buyard.

an ala report states that ''the perfect circle of the so-called
new world order is closing: the only dominating block (the united
states and its allies) carries out the military occupations it
needs, the u.n. gives them legal approval, and the media
neutralise possible negative reactions.''

why somalia? why africa? an analyst of security matters who
does not wished to be named, maintains that the intervention in
somalia is a continuation of the war against iraq in 1991.

''both have the same goal: to guarantee strategic resources in
the area and to show the world, allies and enemies, that there is
no doubt about the world leadership,'' he says.

outcry against media and military insensitivity in somalia was
particularly fierce in france where government minister bernard
kouchener has also come under fire for pulling publicity stunts in
the face of human suffering.

kouchner, who was behind october's campaign by french
schoolchildren to collect rice for somalia, has always defended
his actions, saying humanitarian initiatives need publicity to
succeed.

somalia: media attacked for turning human suffering into a circus(3-e)

but while it is normal for the press to follow the distribution
of aid, there is a point where it becomes indecent, says rony
braumann, president of the humanitarian organisation, medecins
sans frontieres. ''in somalia, that level has been passed by a
long, long shot.''

like many, he believes the humanitarian operation in somalia
should have been handled by both the military and media with
discretion and tact. ''to receive is always humiliating, be it in
mogadishu or in the suburbs of paris,'' he says.

but in london, analysing the british press, john magrath of the
aid charity oxfam was more positive about the role of the media,
noting that some reporters have fulfilled the role of impartial
observers of the operation.

said magrath: ''george alagaiah, the bbc correspondent, has been
on the spot during the landings, during the unfortunate
manhandling of the somali airport guards, the shooting by french
paratroopers -- and george alagaiah has been there to question
them.

''he has pointed out how humiliating and clumsy those operations
were. if the media hadn't been there how else would we have known
about them?

''richard dowden of the independent (newspaper) has reported
events very objectively and has consistently warned about the
dangers of turning this into either a media circus or into some
exercise to glorify the u.s. army.''(end/ips/ci/ao/ved/cg/ad/92)