Across globe, hopes soar for new US leader
Güncelleme Tarihi:
AP
OluÅŸturulma Tarihi: Ocak 21, 2009 00:00
WASHINGTON - From Kenya and Indonesia to Europe and areas around the world, well-wishers rejoice the arrival of a new American president. Celebrations mark the ascendancy of Barack Obama whose sense of hope has electrified the world
A world made weary by war, recession, joblessness and fear shed its collective burden yesterday to celebrate the arrival of a new American president.Â
Bulls and goats were slaughtered for feasts in Kenya and caterers prepared for black-tie balls in the capitals of Europe. Street vendors in Indonesia cooked up "Obama" fried rice and children from his former school in Indonesia sang the Star-Spangled Banner. While hula dancers took the stage in a small Japanese city that coincidentally bears his name, many in the Mideast responded the new era in the United States with both hope and skepticism.
From Kenya and Indonesia, where the new U.S. president has family ties, to areas around the world, Barack Obama represented a volcanic explosion of hope for better days ahead.
The ascendance of the first African-American to the presidency of the United States was heralded as marking a new era of tolerance and possibility. It was a reflection of Obama's sprawling, complex family tree that villages in places as diverse as Ireland and Kenya held special parties to celebrate their link to the new president. An Irish village called Moneygall covered itself in red, white and blue bunting yesterday in honor of Obama's connections, via a great-great-great grandfather named Fulmouth Kearney who emigrated to the United States in 1850. Road signs read "Moneygall welcomes our President, Barack Obama."
Celebrations in Kenya
In Kenya, feasts were being prepared, beer with Obama's name on it put out and movie screens erected so neighbors could join together for the moment, a year after their own elections were marred by ethnic violence.
"Our election in Kenya really had problems with ethnicity ... America has shown that this doesn't have to be that big a problem," said Dr. Joseph Osoo, who runs a clinic in one of Kenya's biggest slums. "Kenyan are very happy because their son is going to be the leader of America," he said.
At the U.N. complex overlooking the Danube River in Vienna, Austria, someone wrote "YES, WE CAN!" in giant block letters in the snow. In Sweden, African-American singer Cyndee Peters was hosting a show named "A Gala for Obama," featuring dozens of Swedish soul, jazz, hip-hop, gospel, folk and blues artists.
In London, Americans got free admission to Madame Tussaud's waxworks to see the new figure of Obama, and Queen Elizabeth II sent the new president a personal message of support. Parties organized in dozens of venues, from ritzy hotels to local bars.
In Jakarta, where Obama spent four years as a young boy, students from his former school swayed and spun in bright, traditional costumes representing Indonesia's ethnically diverse tropical islands. Old classmates gathered to watch his speech at the Menteng 1 elementary school, where he is fondly remembered as a chubby kid called Barry.
"I'm proud that the next president is someone who I have shared time with," said Rully Dasaad, a fellow Boy Scout with Obama. "It was a crucial time for children our age, it is when we learned tolerance, sharing, pluralism, acceptance and respect of difference in cultures and religions."
In the Japanese town of Obama, hula dancers performed - Obama was born in Hawaii, and hula is popular in Japan. Businesses pumped out Obama sweet bean cakes, chopsticks, T-shirts, fish burgers, neck ties and noodles.
Many across the Middle East heralded the inauguration, but expressed reservations about how much Obama will actually change U.S. policy in a region where anti-American sentiment spiked during Bush administration.
Those doubts have become more pronounced in recent weeks with the devastating Gaza offensive by U.S. ally Israel that killed over 1,250 Palestinians.
But Obama still retains a great deal of goodwill in the Middle East for having a Muslim father. Saleh al-Mohaisen, who runs a jewelry store in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said he was "overjoyed" when Obama was elected.
"I felt that he could understand Arab suffering," he said.
Bulls and goats were slaughtered for feasts in Kenya and caterers prepared for black-tie balls in the capitals of Europe. Street vendors in Indonesia cooked up "Obama" fried rice and children from his former school in Indonesia sang the Star-Spangled Banner. While hula dancers took the stage in a small Japanese city that coincidentally bears his name, many in the Mideast responded the new era in the United States with both hope and skepticism.
From Kenya and Indonesia, where the new U.S. president has family ties, to areas around the world, Barack Obama represented a volcanic explosion of hope for better days ahead.
The ascendance of the first African-American to the presidency of the United States was heralded as marking a new era of tolerance and possibility. It was a reflection of Obama's sprawling, complex family tree that villages in places as diverse as Ireland and Kenya held special parties to celebrate their link to the new president. An Irish village called Moneygall covered itself in red, white and blue bunting yesterday in honor of Obama's connections, via a great-great-great grandfather named Fulmouth Kearney who emigrated to the United States in 1850. Road signs read "Moneygall welcomes our President, Barack Obama."
Celebrations in Kenya
In Kenya, feasts were being prepared, beer with Obama's name on it put out and movie screens erected so neighbors could join together for the moment, a year after their own elections were marred by ethnic violence.
"Our election in Kenya really had problems with ethnicity ... America has shown that this doesn't have to be that big a problem," said Dr. Joseph Osoo, who runs a clinic in one of Kenya's biggest slums. "Kenyan are very happy because their son is going to be the leader of America," he said.
At the U.N. complex overlooking the Danube River in Vienna, Austria, someone wrote "YES, WE CAN!" in giant block letters in the snow. In Sweden, African-American singer Cyndee Peters was hosting a show named "A Gala for Obama," featuring dozens of Swedish soul, jazz, hip-hop, gospel, folk and blues artists.
In London, Americans got free admission to Madame Tussaud's waxworks to see the new figure of Obama, and Queen Elizabeth II sent the new president a personal message of support. Parties organized in dozens of venues, from ritzy hotels to local bars.
In Jakarta, where Obama spent four years as a young boy, students from his former school swayed and spun in bright, traditional costumes representing Indonesia's ethnically diverse tropical islands. Old classmates gathered to watch his speech at the Menteng 1 elementary school, where he is fondly remembered as a chubby kid called Barry.
"I'm proud that the next president is someone who I have shared time with," said Rully Dasaad, a fellow Boy Scout with Obama. "It was a crucial time for children our age, it is when we learned tolerance, sharing, pluralism, acceptance and respect of difference in cultures and religions."
In the Japanese town of Obama, hula dancers performed - Obama was born in Hawaii, and hula is popular in Japan. Businesses pumped out Obama sweet bean cakes, chopsticks, T-shirts, fish burgers, neck ties and noodles.
Many across the Middle East heralded the inauguration, but expressed reservations about how much Obama will actually change U.S. policy in a region where anti-American sentiment spiked during Bush administration.
Those doubts have become more pronounced in recent weeks with the devastating Gaza offensive by U.S. ally Israel that killed over 1,250 Palestinians.
But Obama still retains a great deal of goodwill in the Middle East for having a Muslim father. Saleh al-Mohaisen, who runs a jewelry store in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said he was "overjoyed" when Obama was elected.
"I felt that he could understand Arab suffering," he said.