SYDNEY, Australia (15 May 2009) — Tourism Australia is under fire again over the use of a picture that, it is claimed, mocks American sacrifices in World War II. Its "No leave, no life" campaign shows a family hoisting a beach umbrella in the image of the famous photograph of US marines erecting a flag on Iwo Jima after a battle that claimed the lives of almost 7000 US servicemen and 20,000 Japanese. Military veterans have complained to the Prime Minister's office about the ad, which purports to encourage families to "win the work/life battle" by taking a short break to help themselves and the struggling tourism industry. And international advertising blogs have attacked the ad as "tasteless" and "inappropriate". The ad says it aims to unlock Australia's staggering 123 million days of stockpiled annual leave. But RSL national president Bill Crews slammed the ad, saying he hoped the parallels were accidental. "We would be concerned if this was a direct attempt to replicate the Iwo Jima monument," he said. Melbourne-based former US marine Bill Flynn said he was troubled by the ad. "The picture has great symbolic meaning for Americans," he said. "If they have deliberately copied the image to make a marketing point, they've done the wrong thing." A spokeswoman for Tourism Australia said the pose struck in the campaign was meant to mimic any flag-raising to mark victory, whether on a beach, a battlefield or man's conquest of the moon. | | Angry veterans are asking Tourism Australia "where the bloody hell are your brains, dignity and common sense?" The original photograph, taken on Mt Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal, won a Pulitzer Prize, inspired a memorial statue in Washington and was central to the 2006 Clint Eastwood films Flags Of Our Fathers and Letters From Iwo Jima. Tourism Australia has been criticised for several recent ad campaigns, including the "Where the bloody hell are you?" series of promotions featuring model Lara Bingle. It was found offensive by many people overseas.
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