“The City of Melon”: satire on the crisis in Iraq

Iraqi actor Atheer Kashkool is part of a troupe that presents a satirical show on television.

Despite the pressures and threats, he remains hopeful of possible change.

© Guilhem Delteil/RFI

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

In a country crossed by both a political crisis and a socio-economic crisis, actor Atheer Kashkool tries to make his compatriots laugh.

He is part of a troupe that presents a satirical television show, a form of resistance to the parties in place and of hope for better days.

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With our special correspondents,

Guilhem Delteil

and

Bertrand Haeckler

The show is called

Melon City

.

She wields satire in hopes of bringing small changes to the country's situation.

It is the first of its kind in Iraq.

And his acerbic gaze earns him enmities, says Atheer Kashkool.

The political parties offered us a lot of things: money, positions.

But we refused.

So they accused us of being foreign agents.

Today they have charges ready for anyone who speaks against them.

 »

The program was also deprogrammed from a public channel, but taken up on a private channel.

Because

La Ville du melon

has conquered a large audience and is changing mentalities, wants to believe the actor.

Thank God, our show has become one of the most watched in Iraq.

Before, the programs praised people who killed.

But when we started talking about them sarcastically, they started to stop being scared.

And this is very important.

»

Atheer Kashkool has already received direct threats against him and his relatives.

But he says he is determined to continue.

“ 

When the October Revolution started, it gave me a lot of hope.

I started not to be afraid anymore, to feel strong.

I had decided to leave the country, but with the revolution I saw many people reject the political system.

»

Like many Iraqis, Atheer Kashkool does not feel concerned by

the ongoing showdown between the Shiite formations

.

His hopes for change do not go through the current leaders.

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  • Humor