Picasso's Guernica bids farewell to Kantar

Was it a fateful coincidence that as the Lebanese prisoners were waiting to be allowed an exit to freedom in the recent Hezbollah-Israeli prisoners swap, that all of the five prisoners stood in front of a replica of Pablo Picasso's Guernica hanging on the wall behind them as their handover procedures were being processed? Indeed, how ironic the coincidence that fate brings about.

Could the painting's powerful imagery of war and its representation of peace indicate the signs of things to come in the Middle East region?

The Guernica was painted as a depiction of the Nazi bombing of Guernica, Spain in 1937, which killed thousands of people. It was a turning point in the history of the Spanish civil war, which engulfed the country for so many years to follow. The painting epitomised the tragedies of war, the suffering it inflicts on the human soul, and the destruction it unleashes - both physically and emotionally - as it leaves behind a trail of death, violence, brutality, chaos, and a complete disregard for human life. Over time, the Guernica became a symbol for all anti-war efforts as much as for all calls for peace across the world.

As the longest Arab political prisoner - Samir Kantar - stood handcuffed in front of the painting waiting to be transferred. The ramifications of the end of his 29 years in prison and the meanings exemplified in Picasso's black and white masterpiece truly could not be overlooked.

After all, Kantar was imprisoned for fighting a war he believed in and one he never regretted becoming part of even after his release from prison. He strongly believed in the justice of waging a fight to bring down the injustices caused by a force of occupation - one that brought about death, fear, darkness, and grief. The occupied were entrapped and disfigured by the wrath of brutality similarly in experience and not just in symbolism to the chopped up and fragmented parts in the Guernica.

Wailing woman

Could it be that the wailing woman in the mural holding a dead child in her hands with her face tilted towards the sky an echo of the grieving mothers of the children massacred while asleep in Qana - twice in 1996 and 2006? Could it be that the dead child is a reminder of the 1,000 or so Palestinian children - almost all under the age of 18 years - killed by Israeli forces over the past eight years?

Could it be that the frightened bird or dove in the painting is a reflection to how Israel treats any peace attempt in the region? Could it be that the figure with the raised hands that is cornered by fire is a reflection of the suffering ensued by Israel's mighty artillery as much as nature - in the war on Lebanon in 2006, during the Al Aqsa intifada in 2000, in the first intifada of 1987, the occupation of South Lebanon in the mid-1980s and the invasion of the country in 1982 and in 1978?

When an Israeli reporter interviewed Kantar for the first time a few years ago, he stated: "You are all banging your heads against the wall. You are playing a zero sum game, and both sides are losing. The solution is for the stronger side to compromise. You are the stronger side. You are the occupiers. If you don't compromise, things will not work out." And it was this bitter solution that Israel had to concede to in its negotiations for a prisoners' swap.

If the Guernica is timeless, it is because it became a reference point throughout history - a reminder of how atrocious the savagery of wars can be. And because of this aspect, it also stands as an envisagement of what hope could bring about.

When Kantar was asked in his interview what he would do after his release, he said: "I really don't know... This is the first time I will experience life on the outside as an adult. I need to learn how to drive, to go to the bank, to buy things. I have never held money in my hands. I want to have my own key [to the house], so that I can come and go whenever I please, to drink coffee on the balcony, to smoke a cigarette, to go down and swim in the sea and go jet skiing".

Could this also be the dream of the 11,000 Palestinian prisoners currently being held in Israeli prisons, including about 400 children who are still in detention?

This is an interesting and useful article: it is informative, reminds readers of atrocities of wars and supports peaceful solutions to conflicts.
Dr. Ali Sadik
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 23, 2008, 13:16