Islamists ban music from radio
Source: Agencies |
April 14, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
SOMALI radio stations stopped playing music yesterday after Islamic militants ordered stations to take songs off the air after the group labeled music as un-Islamic.
The edict is the latest unpopular order from Islamists, who have also banned bras, musical ringtones and movies. The order to stop the music echoes the Taliban's strict social rules imposed on Afghans beginning in the late 1990s.
Somalia has a tradition of music and most residents greeted the ban with dismay.
"Now I think we are going to be forced to hear only the horrific sounds of the gunfire and the explosions," said Khadiya Omar, a 22-year-old Mogadishu resident who called music a "tranquilizer" to help him forget life's troubles.
As many as a dozen Mogadishu-based radio stations stopped playing music yesterday after the insurgent group Hizbul Islam gave the order earlier this month.
Somalis in the country's capital can still listen to music on two stations: one that the government controls and another that is funded by the United Nations. Both stations are based in the small area of Mogadishu under the control of government and African Union forces.
Similar edicts have been imposed on stations in southern Somali regions held by the Islamist group al-Shabab.
Islamic insurgents control much of Mogadishu and have been trying to topple the government for three years.
Any station that defies the order could face severe punishments. Abdulahi Yasin Jama at Tusmo broadcasting said that stations have no choice but to comply.
The ban on music means that even talk-radio stations will have to make changes, like stopping using music as a bridge between programs.
The edict is the latest unpopular order from Islamists, who have also banned bras, musical ringtones and movies. The order to stop the music echoes the Taliban's strict social rules imposed on Afghans beginning in the late 1990s.
Somalia has a tradition of music and most residents greeted the ban with dismay.
"Now I think we are going to be forced to hear only the horrific sounds of the gunfire and the explosions," said Khadiya Omar, a 22-year-old Mogadishu resident who called music a "tranquilizer" to help him forget life's troubles.
As many as a dozen Mogadishu-based radio stations stopped playing music yesterday after the insurgent group Hizbul Islam gave the order earlier this month.
Somalis in the country's capital can still listen to music on two stations: one that the government controls and another that is funded by the United Nations. Both stations are based in the small area of Mogadishu under the control of government and African Union forces.
Similar edicts have been imposed on stations in southern Somali regions held by the Islamist group al-Shabab.
Islamic insurgents control much of Mogadishu and have been trying to topple the government for three years.
Any station that defies the order could face severe punishments. Abdulahi Yasin Jama at Tusmo broadcasting said that stations have no choice but to comply.
The ban on music means that even talk-radio stations will have to make changes, like stopping using music as a bridge between programs.
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