Well-known political cartoonist Zunar, or his real name Zulkiflee Anwar Ul-haque, is often asked why he depicts the prime minister's wife Rosmah Mansor with gigantic hairdo, breasts and diamond rings.
“It’s not her hair, breasts or rings. She’s just an object of my cartoons. What is more important is the subject matter of my work, which is the corruption plaguing the nation,” he told a packed audience in Georgetown today.
"However, without Rosmah, I cannot survive as a cartoonist. I get restless and pray to God for Rosmah to say something as whatever she utters helps me draw my cartoons," he observed with a smile.
Zunar is here to launch his exhibition titled ‘Sapuman - Man of Steal’ where he takes painful jibes at Rosmah and her husband Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.
Present at the launch today at The Space, Beach Road was Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari. The exhibition runs until Dec 6 from 10am to 6pm.
Zunar has just returned from New York where he received the prestigious International Press Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists in New York, a recognition which he dedicated to all Malaysians pushing for reform in the country.
It’s typical of Zunar to hit his targets directly; he did not mince his words when he said: “I’m here to expose the government, to fight through my cartoons until this regime falls”.
"People say the opposition is just as bad, well […] I may agree but let's bring down BN first," he said..
The popular cartoonist, who also draws for Malaysiakini, is unfazed about the nine sedition charges he faces as a result of his intellectually provocative artwork.
His court case comes up in two weeks and if convicted simultaneously on all the nine charges, he faces up to 43 years in prison.
“But I will not be fleeing the country anytime soon. I am going to face the nine charges head-on,” Zunar said.
“It’s good for them (the authorities) if I run away but I will be staying put here,” he added, to loud applause from the crowd.
"I will face the consequences. Someone has to cross the line of fear for you will not know what is beyond until you cross the line. But when you find out what it is, you will overcome the fear," he said.
Phone is tapped
Zunar is not concerned about travel bans or further arrests when he leaves the country to promote his art. He is leaving for Switzerland in mid-December and his past exhibitions have taken him to Italy, the UK, US and Australia.
He does not want to think about the police's tactics in wanting to clamp down on his dissent or freedom of expression.
He shows no sign of stopping his work either, saying “Stop the import of ink into the country if you want me to stop drawing.
"I draw with Chinese or Indian ink. I do not know why there is no Malay ink. Maybe Perkasa should be fighting for Malay ink," he quipped, poking fun at the ultra-Malay rights group led by Ibrahim Ali.
As he guided audience members around his exhibition, Zunar lamented that some of his supporters faced trouble with their employers for associating themselves with him.
He cited incidents where a lecturer in Sarawak was questioned for hosting a Zunar event and five Telekom staff who were warned by their employers for buying his book and promoting them on their Facebook pages.
“My phone, too, is tapped but that’s good. It only means I can say whatever I like for the police to hear!”
A member of the audience asked if he wanted readers to 'laugh or get angry' when reading his books. Zunar replied “Laugh [...] as laughter is a form of protest”.
He urged his fans to laugh when the country’s leaders make serious comments but to refrain from laughing when the PM cracks a joke.
“These leaders, they cannot handle laughter. Perhaps, they might pass an anti-laughing law one day where people have to get a permit to laugh,” Zunar said, eliciting more laughter from the crowd. -Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.