Recognising artists, filmmakers and writers whose work asserts artistic freedom and battles against repression and injustice
Accepting the award Ali Ferzat said:
Artists are an integral part of any popular revolt. Their work encourages people to participate and take part in the revolution. Artists come from among the people and express their hopes, dreams and struggles.
When an artist becomes the living conscience of his people, he assumes an immense responsibility: everyone looks up to him. The artist needs to keep a compass in his heart and mind to be faithful to his people’s needs. That compass is the affection people have for the artist and the fact they trust him to deliver their human and national message to the world.
For any artist, his compass should be the degree to which people accept and identify with his work, the extent to which he is considered their living conscience; a lamplighter who shines a light on love, humanity and freedom when times are dark and difficult.
Artists know they are following the correct track when the international community and organisations honour their work and acknowledge it, they know they are on the right path towards love, peace and freedom.
Click here to see the full shortlist for the Arts Award
A cartoonist is facing trial for a caricature in which he renounces God. Turkish cartoonist Bahadır Baruter created an image showing an imam and believers praying in a mosque, with one believer on his mobile phone, asking God to excuse him from the last part of the prayer to run errands. The Istanbul chief public prosecutor’s office charged Baruter with “insulting the religious values adopted by a part of the population” and requested that he be imprisoned for one year. The cartoon, which was published in the weekly Penguen magazine, included the words “There is no Allah, religion is a lie”, hidden in the image.
The chief executive officer and managing director of Business Summit Review was detained on January 11 after the magazine ran a cover cartoon depicting Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni slicing up a cake in celebration of 48 years of Uganda’s independence. Mustapha Mugisa was released a few hours after his arrest but faces charges of political offence.
South African president, Jacob Zuma has filed a $440,000 defamation lawsuit over a cartoon depicting him as a rapist of the justice system. The cartoon, published in 2008 by South Africa’s Sunday Times, depicts Zuma pulling his trousers down and about to rape a woman symbolising the justice system, aided by allies. One of Zuma’s allies depicted in the cartoon, filed a complaint about the cartoon before South Africa’s Human Rights Commission in 2008, however the commission concluded that the cartoon did not violate Zuma’s constitutional right to dignity or constitute hate speech.
