| | Americans Kill Babies!!More evidence of our anti-American stance came when the South African broadcasting commission said it was going to cancel our contract with CNN and instead switch to Al Jazeera, which is an Arab news service. It caused a massive public outcry, and then they dropped the plans.
But, nevertheless, we now have a permanent correspondent in Baghdad. We often get direct news reports from there which are no doubt, subtle propaganda intended to turn us against you Americans. They show us their daily life, and how they are suffering, and how, when you folks attack them and bomb them, you will be destroying their lives. Nobody mentions the 1,600 death row prisoners Saddam used for his chemical and biological experiments. Nobody mentions his aggression, etc. Instead, we are told to feel sorry for all these innocent civilians whom you Americans are going to kill.
Then they did a story, which really smacked of propaganda. It was about all the children and babies in hospitals in Iraq, and how there was no place to put them once the casualties from the American attacks were streaming in. They were saying there was such limited hospital space and they might have to throw the babies out, or maybe they might just not have space for the dead and dying as America was attacking them. I listened to this, and remarked that this is definitely propaganda, aimed now at portraying Americans as baby killers.
The next day was a rare rainy day in Johannesburg. As I was going to work, I spotted a small protest in the middle of Johannesburg, across from the Library. I saw signs attacking Bush and Blair, and saw a group of little tiny tots, lined up by a black lady, and carrying banners which read, "Stop the war in Iraq". There were Police watching over this protest in the rain, and I saw a few journalists taking photographs. Strangely, the protest never made the TV news nor the local newspapers. But clearly, somebody, somewhere was going to put out this story.
I parked my car quickly, and grabbed an old camera I keep in the car, and took some photos of this anti-American protest. In South Africa, anti-Israeli and anti-American sentiment run together. Those who support Palestine also support Iraq and they also hate America.
The little black children were made to march and chant "We want peace! We want peace!" and their signs had a strong message - likening them to the children who would be killed in Iraq.
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