Jews Attempt to Ban New Book on Mideast Conflict
Source: Reuters News Service | December 10, 2002
Jewish Groups Seek to Ban Book on
Mideast Conflict
By Joelle Diderich
PARIS (Reuters) – Jewish organizations have called for a ban on a novel by a teenage girl about the Middle East conflict which they say glorifies Palestinian suicide bombers and fuels racial hatred.
French publisher Flammarion said Tuesday it had been deluged by protests since publishing last month a translation of “Sognando Palestina” (“Dream of Palestine”) by 15-year-old Randa Ghazi as part of a series of books aimed at adolescents.
The book was originally published in Italian in March. Ghazi, born in Italy of Egyptian parents, depicts teenagers caught up in the Palestinian uprising for independence. One of the characters blows himself up, killing five Israeli soldiers.
Anti-racist [Jewish] group LICRA called on the government Tuesday to ban the book under publishing laws destined to protect young readers, but said it did not plan to fight the novel in court.
The Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center and France’s CRIF umbrella group of Jewish organizations urged Flammarion and its Italian parent company, Rizzoli Corriere della Sera, to withdraw the book.
They called on French Web Sites and the French and German arms of Internet retailer Amazon.com to stop selling the novel.
“It is beyond comprehension that a book targeting young French readers at Christmas time would have as its central character a teen-ager who becomes a suicide bomber,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.
The debate comes amid growing sensitivity to radical Islam in France, home to Europe’s largest Muslim community, and government efforts to promote moderate Islam against radical ideas spreading among youths.
French courts recently threw out a bid to ban a book by Italian author Oriana Fallaci criticizing Islamic fundamentalism and acquitted French writer Michel Houellebecq of inciting racial hatred after he called Islam “the stupidest religion.”
An official at Flammarion, which is also Houellebecq’s publisher, said Ghazi’s book portrayed both extremists and moderates and therefore did not constitute an incitement to hatred and violence.
“The publisher would like to point out, in a spirit of appeasement, that this is a work of fiction which should not be interpreted in ideological terms,” said the official, who asked not to be named.
No sales figures were available for the book, which was ranked number 193 at midday Tuesday on the Web Site Amazon.fr.
“It is clearly not among our top sellers,” said Elisa O’Neill, spokeswoman for the French division of Amazon.com.
She said the company had received letters of protest but had no plans to withdraw the book, since it was not banned.
“This decision does not in any way stem from a prejudice against one religion or another,” added O’Neill.
French retailer FNAC said several customers had protested to store managers but it too planned to continue selling the novel.
“Our job is not to be censors. Having said that, we are not giving it particular prominence either,” said a spokesman.
