Following Alistair's timely observation re the racist imagery of the Hutu.
There are a number of other very disturbing aspects of the reporting of
this event in the NZ Press (2 of the 'murdered tourists' were kiwis)
including the following:
There are no questions being asked about the presence of white tourists in
the national park in the first place. The right of tourists to go
everywhere, see everything, be safe, regardless of the tortured politics of
the countries they are visiting has remained intact. The discourses of
'tourism - as - natural - right' appear to be enhanced rather than
trammeled by event such as this.
There are few reminders being offered on our press about the 100s of
thousands of Rwandan/Ugandan lives that have been lost through brutal
'civil' wars in the last 10 years or how these events might quite
'rationally' be connected to a 'distaste' for foreigners (tourists or
otherwise).
There is no analysis of the nature of the racialised representation of the
either the 'rebels' or the Ugandan government - the latter is paradoxically
represented as civilised for endorsing the killing of 15 'suspected' Hutu ...
etc etc
and yes, it is a terrible thing that 8 people are killed unexpectedly - but
at least 8 people are killed without warning on our roads every few months
and the discourses invoked to express outrage and despair about such events
is quite different. What happens in 'darkest Africa' continues to be the
presented and represented as anathema to the 'culture and civilisation' of
the 'West". The PM of NZ does not seem to have much idea of anything other
than "Africa" when she sputters on radio news the 'the Africans' involved
in the killing must be brought to justice ...etc etc
So excuse me but I have to go now and make a booking to go visit some cute
guerillas in Africa
RP
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