imprint EDITORIAL PUBLISHER Alexander Büchler, Managing Director HEAD OFFICE heidelberg business media GmbH Hubweg 15 74939 Zuzenhausen, Germany phone: +49 6221-65108-0 fax: +49 6221-65108-28 [email protected] EDITORIAL Kay Barton Heike Fischer Gabriele Kosmehl Michael Maruschke Ruari McCallion Anthony Withers WikiPETia. info [email protected] MEDIA CONSULTANTS Martina Hirschmann [email protected] Johann Lange-Brock [email protected] phone: +49 6221-65108-0 fax: +49 6221-65108-28 LAYOUT AND PREPRESS EXPRIM Werbeagentur | exprim.de Matthias Gaumann READER SERVICES Till Kretner [email protected] PRINT Chroma Druck Eine Unternehmung der Limberg-Druck GmbH Danziger Platz 6 67059 Ludwigshafen, Germany WWW www.hbmedia.net | www.petpla.net PETplanet Insider ISSN 1438-9459 is published 10 times a year. This publication is sent to qualified subscribers (1-year subscription 149 EUR, 2-year subscription 289 EUR, Young professionals’ subscription 99 EUR. Magazines will be dispatched to you by airmail). Not to be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. Note: The fact that product names may not be identified as trademarks is not an indication that such names are not registered trademarks. 3 PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 06/22 www.petpla.net Dear readers, In my last Editorial I waxed lyrical about a peaceful BBQ evening. This time I’m introducing you to a much edgier topic – the machinations of some colourful family clans here in Germany. It might appear slightly off-topic at first but bear with me, I promise it will all make sense in the end. This anecdote, a scarcely edifying story, involves two main characters, the first being the controversial German rapper Bushido, real name Anis Ferchichi. Bushido has enriched the musical landscape with several studio albums. One, entitled ‘Public Enemy No. 1’ took a pop at various federal institutions. The second character in the story, Arafat Abou-Chaker is allegedly a member of the notorious Abou-Chaker Palestinian crime family. In the late 2000s, the above-mentioned duo entered into a financially fruitful collaboration. Unfortunately, this was not a friendship destined to endure. At the end of 2017, Bushido wished to end any business relations with Mr. Abou-Chaker. In an attempt to finally resolve the matter, the parties met in their shared office in January 2018. Soon thereafter, the self-proclaimed public enemy No. 1 decided to cooperate with the prosecution and requested police protection. What could have left such a lasting impression on Bushido that he finally turned to the federal authorities? According to Bushido himself, Mr. Abou-Chaker and three of his brothers had thrown insults and made death threats against him. But it was a very different incident, allegedly at this very same meeting, which seemed to have inflamed German media. And now here is the punchline: It was reported that Mr. Abou-Chaker had attacked Bushido and struck him in the face with a half-filled PET water bottle. Media reaction was enormous but ambivalent. Some commentators were enraged by the violence that apparently is used in such circles. Others expressed amusement that Bushido had specified that the attack was carried out with an otherwise harmless PET-bottle. Am I taken by surprise that a dispute about money and power between two men, allegedly attributed to organised crime, eventually revolves around a PETbottle? Certainly not! I have never questioned the social value of PETbottles. Nevertheless, I confess my disappointment that nobody has asked the vital question: was the PET bottle reusable or single use? Wouldn’t this key detail help to determine the gravity of the alleged offence? Perhaps such technical details are irrelevant. What is important is that this PET bottle has made a significant contribution, at least in the media, to the history of rap in Germany. Yours sincerely, Alexander Büchler
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