And the Game is Over
Have you noticed that the war is over? No, not the guerrilla war. That was over in 1991, and it's not restarting anytime soon. I'm talking about the propaganda war, about who's the real human rights offender -- the only war that matters since. And more precisely, the Internet war.
Not that it's the only front, but it's certainly one of the major ones -- not blogs like this one (however much I'd like to think so), but the news stacked up by online newspapers and found in search engines. This is the primary source for most people interested in the conflict: they catch a brief glance of it in a newspaper, or in the rare TV spot. And then they Google: and that's when the battle is won.
Polisario does what it can, presumably, but it's Internet resources are, to say the least, limited. Algeria, hydrocarbon billions notwithstanding, does nothing except stake its future on the conflict; it doesn't actually try to win it. Morocco, on the other hand, has put its money where its mouth is, and it pays off -- big time.
- AP: Refugees from Western Sahara speak of hardships
(Story origin: MACP) - IHT: Sahara refugees' stories highlight hardships and propaganda war ...
(Story origin: MACP) - Human Events: The Polisario 'Berlin Wall
(Story origin: MACP) - MAP: Fifteen Sahrawi families exchange new HCR-led family visits
(Story origin: MAP) - Middle East Times: The forgotten tribes of the Sahara
(Story origin: MACP) - Earthtimes: Refugees International Hosts Forum ...
(Story origin: MACP) - Afrik.com: The Polisario Front insists on a referendum for Western Sahara
(Story origin: SPS) - MAP: UNSC resolution 1813 'best resolution' to solve Sahara issue ...
(Story origin: MAP) - PR Newswire: UN Envoy Calls for Compromise and Realism in the Sahara ...
(Story origin: MACP) - Sun Herald: Members of Congress Pledge to Address Inhumane Conditions and ...
(Story origin: MACP)
That's right, nine out of ten stories have as their origin an event created by, or a press statement released by, either the MACP or the MAP. The MACP, or Moroccan-American Center for Policy, is Rabat's official lobby in Washington, controlled and paid for by the government of Muhammad VI. The Maghreb Arabe Press, or MAP, is the Moroccan state news agency. One lonely item is sourced to the Sahara Press Service, SPS, which is Polisario's news agency.
Now, I'm not saying the SPS is a much more reliable source than MAP or MACP. All three are propaganda outfits, spewing out press statements and communiques in the hope of being picked up by some reputable broadcaster or furthered as an Internet newsblast. All articles describe reality more or less in line with what the origin-of-quotes would like to, i.e. MAP and MACP sourced articles paint Polisario as a decadent band of abusive Islamo-Communists, while the SPS article is focused on the international law angle (which Polisario understandably wants to bring attention to).
The point is that journalism on Western Sahara is precisely that: picking up a press statement and filling an empty corner of today's foreign news section. No one, in Western media outside Spain, does reporting on Western Sahara, since nothing newsworthy ever happens there (and if it does, reporters aren't there to notice). And this is why the imbalance in sourcing matters. This is how a basis for further reporting is created, a resource of ready-made perceptions and quotes for when copyeditors who (in 99% of the cases) will be fresh to the issue, do a quick Google search to figure out who is fighting who.
So, click click click, and then they go: oh so these Pollysario characters are some sort of Marxist-bin Ladenist Algeria separatist terror proxies that are wantonly kidnapping pro-Western Moroccan children to sell into sex slavery on Cuba? Well allrighty then, we'll just headline with "Cold War Terror Still Haunts the Sahara", and then I'll zip this crap over to the printing division and go join the boys an hour early.
And chip, chip. What? Oh, that's just your media narrative falling apart, Mr. Abdelaziz, while you're receiving tiny flags and handicrafts from yet another delegation of Catalán solidarity activists.
14 comments:
"No one, in Western media outside Spain, does reporting on Western Sahara"
Not entirely true. Both Reuters and AFP report on Western Sahara. So does AP on and off. Even German DPA writes some lines on and off. But it's true that coverage leaves a lot to be desired and that no one, not even the Spanish media, has any presence in the occupied territories.
"Polisario does what it can, presumably, but it's Internet resources are, to say the least, limited."
Well, I think that quite a lot more could be done. First the embassy's site was shut down and now Western Sahara Online has also closed.
Right on Alle. The Algerian government's loaded and isn't spending a dime on the propaganda that matters, while SADR remains saddled with a human rights abusing dictator. Neither seems intent on winning Western support.
Meanwhile, Morocco goes ahead and sets up a firm on K Street.
Not entirely true.
No, there are some very laudable exceptions, but they're exceptions. It's true enough. And even when there is reporting, you often get the sense that the reporter really has no clue about the conflict, and just fills it out with lines dug up from old dispatches. For example, the "oh wow, they've finally started negotiating"-angle that universally dominated all reporting when the Manhasset nonsense began. That was basically just editorial spin off of the UN press statements, for lack of own insight, and yet it made it into every newspaper in the world.
quite a lot more could be done. First the embassy's site was shut down and now Western Sahara Online has also closed.
The RASD embassy in Algiers, you mean? Yes, that was pretty good. I mean, that's just unbelieveably simple to fix: put up the exact same content on a new page, if the old one's lost. So okay, Polisario shouldn't escape fire either.
On WSO, I noticed that too. It's a shame, it was good. I guess it was the oldest W. Sahara site online after ARSO?
(Also, for the record, I'd like to point out I don't have anything against Catalán solidarity activists. It's just that they hold too few votes in the US congress to be a really suitable target audience for Polisario's strained resources.)
Personally I do not think the US congressmen should be the main target but rather the French public opinion.
M. Khadad had a good article published in European Voice recently. A similar article in Le Monde however, or any other larger media for that matter, would have a very strong impact.
Regarding Spanish media it is true that reporting there often is better compared to what comes from Reuters or AFP, especially if you read ABC:s Luis de Vega, but you will find the same pre-written style at EFE or Europa Press as you find at news agencies like AFP and Reuters. Same same, but in different language.
The major difference is that Spanish media publish more about the conflict, which in the end leads to better material. They all have their factual errors but maybe in different areas. How many Spanish media do you think publish that Western Sahara still is under Spanish administration, and therefore not a "former colony" - as they tend to present it?
In any case, Polisario's media policy is in need of a good revision - with or without Algerian funding.
I do not think it's really the financial means that are missing so much as focus, structure and planning + more people working with media. And in the camps there are hundreds, if not thousands, of young people only waiting for something useful to do.
But if Algeria would put some extra dollars in, it might become easier to recruit good people for the cause since we all have to eat.
Ps. Will, what is this Polisario bashing all about? Abdelaziz is no dictator. He was elected Secretary General at the last congress in due cause and is not self appointed like the Moroccan king MVI.
Laroussi, you deserve a better answer to my Polisario dissing than I can give you now. Expect a post soon? Also, email me. I have no idea about who you are even though you're basically the king of WS commenters (besides Desertman. Whither El Tiburon?)
I just wanted to say that this post was shared by Ronny Hansen of the Norwegian Committee on Google Reader, so I guess the game (the one between me and WS Info) is over indeed. Ronny's opinion is law.
Seriously though, I want this whole damn MACP thing to make everyone really angry and writing.
A news-google on polisario in Holland gives me only 3 (three) results:
1) a story on van Walsum by NRC Handelsblad
2) a overview of the conflict by Metro Nederland
3) a reaction on leftwing blog Sargasso about where to find a place to collect solar energy - saying "let's make a deal with Polisario" but in dutch ofcourse.
Not much... a google-news search on rasd gives nothing at all.
If the american news media have to focus on RASD something spectacular has to be done. An invitation to Barak Obama of Mrs Clinton? Or maybe indeed an invitation for solar-energy companies to explore the possibilities to invest in the desert.
Algeria "stake[s] its future on the conflict"? How's that? Why should Algeria even care about this conflict any more, apart from residual altruism and typical stubbornness? Never mind winning the propaganda battle abroad - Algeria hasn't even managed to convince its own citizens to take the Western Sahara seriously. The whole idea of WS independence goes against ideologies with much stronger resonance in Algeria - ideals of Islamic, Arab, and even Maghreb unity - and what with the economy and bombings and so forth, the WS would be pretty far down everyone's priority list even if they did really want it independent.
Algeria "stake[s] its future on the conflict"? How's that?
Okay, too strong words on my part: but Algeria certainly stakes its military strategy, self-image, foreign relations, and a lot else on this conflict. Given that, the natural thing would be to make that tiny additional investment needed to stand a sporting chance of winning. Sadly for themselves, and fortunately for Morocco, the Algerian rulers don't seem to have their act together enough to do so, despite a massive cash inflow that would presumably make it an easy decision to throw away a couple of millions on checking Moroccan lobbying successes.
Why should Algeria even care about this conflict any more, apart from residual altruism and typical stubbornness?
Strategic goals, prestige & credibility, resources spent, internal regime/military stuff, cheap stranglehold on the only regional rival, etc. Plus, importantly, genuine conviction on the part of a significant chunk of the ruling elite. Unlike for Morocco, Western Sahara is not a big drain on Algeria's resources, and from their (prevailing and as far as I can tell, not changing anytime soon) point of view, it's much less costly to maintain their present position, than it is to break with 33 years of fixed, high-dedication policy. The slim prospect of actually winning someday (i.e. RASD independence under Algerian influence) is just an added bonus.
Certainly, I don't see them surrendering now, when their strategic position is growing better than in a very long time: end of civil war + cash inflow, while Morocco is feeling the price squeeze, and pro-independence sentiment is spreading epidemically among Sahrawis in W. S. and S. Morocco. On the other hand, I don't see them making the moves necessary to capitalize on the power shift either -- eg. the lobbying thing.
Never mind winning the propaganda battle abroad - Algeria hasn't even managed to convince its own citizens to take the Western Sahara seriously.
True, more or less, if you by "seriously" mean like the way they care about, say, Palestine. On the other hand, there's very little active resistance to the W. Sahara policy either (the odd noise from disgruntled counter-current peripherals who want attention, eg. ex-FIS people or Louisa Hanoune), and at the other end of the spectrum, there's enough active and dedicated support (not in the larger pop, but in the political class, which is where it matters) for Algeria to be able to continue like this with no problem. This would probably change if the support for POLISARIO became a significant strain on state resources/daily life, but as I mentioned, it's not.
The whole idea of WS independence goes against ideologies with much stronger resonance in Algeria - ideals of Islamic, Arab, and even Maghreb unity - and what with the economy and bombings and so forth, the WS would be pretty far down everyone's priority list even if they did really want it independent.
No, the idea of W. S. independence I think has pretty wide support in Algeria, and is closely tied to THE narrative there: their own war of independence. It's just that the proportion of people willing to make a serious investment for it is very much smaller than in Morocco, so for most people, it's just passive acceptance of the government line. But the idea of perpetual conflict with Morocco, however, does definitely go against a major trend in Algerian self-image -- the border closure question is a smart thing for Morocco to bring up. Then again, the rivalry with Morocco is pretty self-sustaining by now, which somewhat balances that handicap. Or perhaps it just polarizes the whole thing.
Good points anyway.
Hey everybody! I'm Mikael, representing the Norwegian Support Committee here in the land of the free and home of the brave.
I, Will, and Suzanne S. of the US-Western Sahara Foundation do what we can to influence US public opinion and sway members of Congress to a pro-Sahrawi view of the conflict, but it's an uphill battle against a well-funded Moroccan lobby (not that any of us are giving up any time soon, far from it).
"...while SADR remains saddled with a human rights abusing dictator."
Yeah, I'd say you were a bit harsh there Will. "Human rights abusing dictator" is an infinitely better description of Hassan II and his offspring Mohammed VI than of M. Abdelaziz - who is more a ramblin' gamblin' kinda guy. Keep in mind that Polisario is still a national liberation movement, and not (yet) merely a political party in a thriving, North-West African, liberal democracy.
The disappearance of Western Sahara Online (wsahara.net) is nothing less than a catastrophe. I am not privy to the specific reasons as for why it folded, but if money is an issue we should all make a financial donation to Khatry so he can get it up and running again. WSO was an excellent, unique and very helpful site, and it filled more than a few spaces left open by ARSO's web site.
Hi Mikael & welcome! But please do sign your posts, there are already far too many anonymouses to keep track of here.
Agree that it's a shame about WSO, that was a good site. Lot's of documents and stuff that I'm not sure even ARSO had.
speak of the devil: RASD embassy in algeria back online.
http://www.amb-rasd.org/
AP has a story on the anniversary of POLISARIO, where they write about the Moroccan "annexation proposal", in the last paragraphs.
"Morocco hopes the U.N. will allow it to annex the territory and promises substantial autonomy for the Saharawis. It also blames Algeria for backing the rebels and preventing an end to the conflict.
The annexation proposal is backed by the United States and France. But more than 50 countries recognize Abdelaziz's government-in-exile of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic."
This is the first time in quite a while that a major international news media has called the Moroccan proposal to the UN by its right name: an annexation proposal.
Now lets see if Reuters, EFE and AFP might have the courage to follow.
I don't think "the Game" is over quite yet...
Ps. Not all media are as lucid as AP. Yahoo published a photo of Aminatou Haidar today for an article about a visit of Corcas to the Canary Islands where they went on one of their promotion tours.
Unfortunately Yahoo put the following text next to the image of Aminatou "Afirman que el proyecto de Marruecos sobre el Sahara tiene respaldo de la mayoría de los saharauis".
I'm not sure weather to be upset, sad or laugh...
Aminatou however maybe could sue Yahoo for defamation at a US court and claim a hefty sum of money? Maybe Will could help her? ;)
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