Riots in Germany over burning of Jamaican Flag

Yes....but don't start calling your Jamaicans friends or tuning into CNN just yet...it is true at least in this commercial. Jamaica's  high profile brand name status continues its influence on media and you tube, this time through a commercial for noted German appliance manufacturer, Saturn.

The You tube buzz worthy ad was released in January 2013 and shows  two coffee shop attendants trying to brew a cup of coffee which results in the burning of a Jamaican Flag  which is captured on film and leads to riots and demonstration out of respect for the Jamaican Flag. Hard to explain ....just watch the video to understand......


Saturn Electronics Commercial Banned For Burning Jamaican Flag from Adpressive on Vimeo.

A few noteworthy points:

• The commercial has as the soundtrack Barrrington Levy's "Murderer" (not sure why as nobody is being murdered but I suspect this song is a well recognized Jamaican song in Germany)

• The burning of the flag is considered a  desecration of the national flag of Jamaica and from this point of view the advertisement can definitely  be considered offensive. In fact under German criminal laws it is illegal to damage the German flag and it is also illegal to damage or revile flags of foreign countries.What we do not know if there is an exception for dramatic works such as a play or a commercial. Our German attorneys are looking into this as we speak. However nowhere can the burning of a national flag be interpreted as acceptable even in this case of comedic story telling.

• If it obviously an ode to the worldwide (and German) recognition of  Jamaican culture that within seconds of the flag being burned, public sentiment can be mobilized with such support, love and admiration

• The actors who are featured at the 0:38 and 0:42 time marks are obviously not Jamaican but just black actors pretending to be Jamaicans.

• Is the flag in the shop due to the fact that Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is recognized worldwide.

Definitely mad worthy of a watch , tell us do you find it offensive or a genuine respect for the Jamaican culture, Regardless of your view as long as they are talking about it, then it brings further attention to this small island and its culture ...................maaaaaahhhhd


Update : After posting this blog and the controversy that the ad has generated the German Ambassador to Jamaica and the German manufacturer Saturn (today, February 26, 2013) have apologized for the ad, explaining it was not meant to offend and has pulled the ad out of respect for the feeling of the Jamaican people. Irony at its best, art imitating life or is it life imitating art?

PS Just to add some context Saturn has a history of these kinds of commercial , this one to advertise their Flat Screen televisions, same concept but no reggae music..

Reggae in Jerusalem is Jamming

Yes Jerusalem, our wide and varied travels took us to the holy land, our good friends TOK were just touring through Israel and we thought how big is reggae and dancehall in that part of the world and we were pleasantly surprised with some of the developments.

Firstly they have the Zion Reggae Fest concert series,  Zion Reggae Fest 2012 is an anuual concert held in Jerusalem's Sacher Park  and featured this year such names as Barrington Levy (in his Israeli debut), Alpha Blondy (back in Israel after 20 years) and local talents Zvuloon Dub System, Shabak and Hatikva 6.

For Israeli reggae fans, this was major and the action behind the scenes is almost as exciting as the talent out front.

Producers Guy (Afficoman) Dreyfuss and Gil (Rasta) Bonstein saw it as an opportunity to transform their first collaboration in two years into a much bigger event.

Dreyfuss and Bonstein are the authority on reggae in Israel, so much so that there should be a picture of the two of them next to the word "reggae" in every Hebrew dictionary.

Dreyfuss is a well-known producer and DJ, both in Israel and Europe, whose expertise goes far beyond reggae beats. He is also the owner of an online ticketing website and the man behind some of Tel Aviv's most infamous street parties. Bonstein, Israel's most veteran reggae producer, could be called his mentor.


The father of Israeli reggae
Bonstein first heard reggae music in Paris in the '70s, and was the first to bring it to Israel.
“I discovered Bob Marley and reggae when there wasn’t any information about it yet. I went into a world that was completely unknown,” he says. “Once upon a time, people could discover worlds. Now everything is exposed on the Internet.”
In 1980, Bonstein returned to Israel, where he began organizing reggae shows and bringing in artists from abroad. In 1985 he established the Soweto (South Western Township) club in Tel Aviv, which was open for 12 years and became a hub for Jamaican and African reggae.

Together, Bonstein and Dreyfuss set up the Web portal reggae.co.il, which is now celebrating its fifth year. It was the first Internet site in Israel to consolidate information about reggae, including history, reviews, articles and updates on reggae parties and performances. On the website’s forum, a genuine community was born, delighted to have a platform for discussion and the exchange of information.

Its primary draw is its textual and photographic documentation of the history of reggae in Israel.
“The main thing is that we were on our own, and we did everything by ourselves, and we got tired,” says Dreyfuss. “There’s such a massive flow of information that it’s impossible to keep up with the pace,” adds Bonstein.


 

There are few Israelis in Jamaica
Despite the rough patches, Bonstein is optimistic. “In Jamaica, Israel is considered a reggae superpower in terms of the number of artists who have performed here and the number of Israelis who visit and live there in the 'hood,” he says proudly. He takes out an enormous binder – one of 30 similar volumes on his shelves – stuffed with reports and newspaper clippings.

Bonstein credits the Israeli celebrity reality series "Pa'am Bahayim," in which singers Ninet Tayeb and Ben Artzi lived in downtown Kingston, with creating a huge wave of Israeli tourism there.
Like any good conversation between two Jews, however, this one soon erupts into an argument.
“No, no, no!” Dreyfuss interrupts. “There are very few Israelis in Jamaica. You personally know everyone who has ever been to Jamaica. Everybody went to your place. Relatively speaking, it’s very few. Also, what you said about how Israel is a reggae superpower – I think that’s very far from reality.” But Bonstein insists. “Israel is a reggae superpower, Rasta,” he says, showing me interviews and album reviews in the Israeli, American and Jamaican press. Among them are articles about Soweto, praise for albums by Israeli bands, and reports about performances in Israel.
Every band is a miracle
Dreyfuss and Bonstein consider every performance that they bring to Israel a cultural achievement. One example is the show by Ziggy Marley, who performed in Israel during the Second Lebanon War. The performance venue was changed twice as rockets fell deeper and deeper into Israel.
But while Depeche Mode canceled their show around the same time period, Marley never gave up for a moment. The producing duo have given every artist they have brought to Israel a tour of Jerusalem (except for Burning Spear, who came to Israel in 1990 when fatal rioting broke out on the Temple Mount). They have also given them a comprehensive look into local cultural life.

The show went on, the singer didn’t lose his voice, nobody got hurt? Then that’s it. We did it. They’re leaving in three days, so from now on, we’re going to have fun. We’re going to enjoy every moment, Rasta. I’ve been bringing people here for 30 years. I’ve never had a cancellation. No Jamaican artist has ever canceled a show in Israel no matter what the situation – not even during a war. It was a miracle that they all came. When Metallica comes here, that’s a miracle, too. Every band is a miracle.”

Excerpts taken from Haaretz newspaper of Tuesday, October 09, 2012
Here are excerts from the show....Maaad