As Bobby Fischer sits in a Japanese detention cell fighting a deportation order, supporters have described the wayward chess legend as a prisoner of politics, a man of convictions who has been mercilessly hounded by US officials. But they have been careful not to go too far into just what Fischer's convictions are.
Stopped by Japanese immigration officials at Narita international airport just outside Tokyo on July 13 after trying to board a flight to the Philippines, the former world chess champion is being held for traveling on an invalid passport.
Fischer has not been allowed to speak publicly since, but supporters say he is appealing deportation on the grounds that his passport was revoked without due process. To avoid being sent to the US, Fischer is also considering claiming German citizenship and is seeking political asylum in Japan or a third country.
His past statements could cloud his chances for success, however.
On a rambling Web site Fischer's supporters acknowledge to be his home page, Fischer launches numerous attacks on Jews and decries the "international Jewish conspiracy" and "Jew-controlled US," which he says are behind plots to both rule the world and ruin his life.
At one point, the site denies the Holocaust.
"The so-called `Holocaust' of the Jews during World War II is a complete hoax! It never happened," it says. "The Jews are liars."
"Japan beware you're backing a loser," it adds. "Don't go down the drain with the filthy Jew-controlled US."
Masako Suzuki, Fischer's lawyer, stressed that Fischer's beliefs -- he has also hailed the Sept. 11 attacks -- should not be an issue in the deportation proceedings. But she acknowledged they could make Japanese officials less sympathetic to his requests for asylum.
"In reality, it can have an impact," she told reporters.
Fischer's comments could become even more of a problem if he goes ahead with the plan to claim German citizenship. Supporters say Fischer, whose father was German, has the documents to do so, but has not begun the application process.
Denying the Holocaust is considered a serious crime in Germany, and though there might be a legal nuance that would allow Fischer to go to Germany without fear of punishment, he would likely need to tone down his rhetoric if he wants to stay there.
In Berlin, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said the government has been in touch with Tokyo and is aware that Fischer has a German father. But he said it was not clear whether Fischer would qualify for citizenship, or whether Fischer's position on the Holocaust would constitute a crime.
Fischer, now 61, has good reason not to want to return to his homeland.
He became an American icon when he dethroned Boris Spassky in a series of games in Reykjavik, Iceland, in 1972 to claim America's first world chess championship in more than a century. But he lost the title a few years later and fell into obscurity before resurfacing to play an exhibition rematch against Spassky in Yugoslavia in 1992.
Fischer won the rematch on the resort island of Sveti Stefan and more than US$3 million in prize money. But the victory came with a high price -- it was played in violation of US sanctions imposed to punish former President Slobodan Milosevic. If convicted, Fischer, who hasn't been to the US since, could face 10 years in prison and a fine of US$250,000.
Still, his decision to play in Yugoslavia may pay off once again -- though it's a very long shot.
On Monday, officials in Montenegro indicated their country is willing to take Fischer in if the US and Japan are open to sending him there.
Because Yugoslavia -- renamed Serbia-Montenegro last year -- was the site of the rematch, the country has a "moral obligation to help Bobby," said Bozidar Ivanovic, a top chess official there.
But President Filip Vujanovic indicated Tuesday that US officials were not supporting the idea.
"Obviously, there aren't conditions for Fischer to be granted asylum" in Montenegro, he told state-run radio.
John Bosnitch, Fischer's spokesman in Japan, said that Fischer has yet to decide whether to pursue the Montenegro option.
Kehinde Sanni spends his days smoothing out dents and repainting scratched bumpers in a modest autobody shop in Lagos. He has never left Nigeria, yet he speaks glowingly of Burkina Faso military leader Ibrahim Traore. “Nigeria needs someone like Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso. He is doing well for his country,” Sanni said. His admiration is shaped by a steady stream of viral videos, memes and social media posts — many misleading or outright false — portraying Traore as a fearless reformer who defied Western powers and reclaimed his country’s dignity. The Burkinabe strongman swept into power following a coup in September 2022
‘FRAGMENTING’: British politics have for a long time been dominated by the Labor Party and the Tories, but polls suggest that Reform now poses a significant challenge Hard-right upstarts Reform UK snatched a parliamentary seat from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labor Party yesterday in local elections that dealt a blow to the UK’s two establishment parties. Reform, led by anti-immigrant firebrand Nigel Farage, won the by-election in Runcorn and Helsby in northwest England by just six votes, as it picked up gains in other localities, including one mayoralty. The group’s strong showing continues momentum it built up at last year’s general election and appears to confirm a trend that the UK is entering an era of multi-party politics. “For the movement, for the party it’s a very, very big
ENTERTAINMENT: Rio officials have a history of organizing massive concerts on Copacabana Beach, with Madonna’s show drawing about 1.6 million fans last year Lady Gaga on Saturday night gave a free concert in front of 2 million fans who poured onto Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro for the biggest show of her career. “Tonight, we’re making history... Thank you for making history with me,” Lady Gaga told a screaming crowd. The Mother Monster, as she is known, started the show at about 10:10pm local time with her 2011 song Bloody Mary. Cries of joy rose from the tightly packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand. Concert organizers said 2.1 million people attended the show. Lady Gaga
SUPPORT: The Australian prime minister promised to back Kyiv against Russia’s invasion, saying: ‘That’s my government’s position. It was yesterday. It still is’ Left-leaning Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday basked in his landslide election win, promising a “disciplined, orderly” government to confront cost-of-living pain and tariff turmoil. People clapped as the 62-year-old and his fiancee, Jodie Haydon, who visited his old inner Sydney haunt, Cafe Italia, surrounded by a crowd of jostling photographers and journalists. Albanese’s Labor Party is on course to win at least 83 seats in the 150-member parliament, partial results showed. Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s conservative Liberal-National coalition had just 38 seats, and other parties 12. Another 17 seats were still in doubt. “We will be a disciplined, orderly
RSS