Iraq, due storie di radio

Due rare storie radiofoniche dall'Iraq, un territorio che continua a essere, in larga misura, un buco nero del giornalismo. Una riguarda Sumer FM (due frequenze su Baghdad ed Erbil), una stazione amata perché dà la parola ai suoi ascoltatori. L'altra una emittente di Mosul che al contrario viene chiusa dalle autorità perché accusata di incitare alla violenza e all'odio etnico anti kurdo e sospettata di fiancheggiamento con i gruppi terroristici arabi nella regione.

Amidst Iraq's violence, a radio station gives people hope
By CORINNE REILLY McClatchy Newspapers

Inside a spacious studio with purple and yellow walls, Hana Abdulkadhim, a well-known Iraqi radio host, is preparing to take her first call of the day. A few minutes into Good Afternoon with Hana, the switchboard is already flooded with listeners eager to chime in on the day's topic. "This afternoon we're talking about circumstances in your life that caused you to lose something or someone you love," Hana says. "Were you able to overcome the situation, or were you defeated?"
A woman named Samma is on the line. "I lost my closest friend when she left our neighborhood," Samma says. Hana asks if her friend was forced to flee. Samma says yes. "Before, we had lots of time together. But now it's too far to reach her. We talk on the phone but it's not the same," she explains. "The circumstances defeated us." Hana tells her caller not to give up on the friendship. "I'm going to play a song for you, sweetheart," she says.
This is Sumer FM, Iraq's most popular independent radio station. It broadcasts from a state-of-the-art, brightly decorated studio in Baghdad's Karrada neighborhood, and its signal reaches every corner of the country. "It doesn't look like Iraq in here, does it?" the station's manager, Ammar Naji, says with a smile.
In a city overwhelmed by the complexities and uncertainties of war, Sumer FM is one thing its listeners can count on. Launched by a Lebanese businessman in November 2004, the station has stayed on the air every day since, even through Baghdad's most violent months.
A year ago, it was so dangerous here that many Iraqis were afraid to even leave their homes, and the cost of living in Baghdad has skyrocketed since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. But staying in and listening to the radio has remained safe and cheap.
Even when the electricity is out, as it still is for large portions of the day here, the radios stay on. "No matter what's going on, we can give people something to enjoy, something to take their minds off everything else," says Jaffar al-Zubaidi, Sumer's program director. "And we don't take money from any parties. We are for all Iraqis," regardless of politics, ethnicity, religion or sect.
Named for one of the earliest known civilizations in the world, Sumer employs 14 people, half of them on-air talent. All of its revenue comes from advertisement sales. About half the time the station plays popular Arab and Iraqi music. The rest of its programming is filled with news, variety shows and talk.
Most of the station's discussion topics come from listeners. The goal is to give Iraqis a venue to vent their frustrations, al-Zubaidi says. The U.S. occupation, the constant power outages, the violence, the traffic jams and the long lines at security checkpoints are among the topics that draw the most callers, he says. "We let people talk about their suffering so they don't feel like they are the only ones," al-Zubaidi says. "And we try to stop the suffering, too, by exposing the issues."
Recently a listener called to complain about how the government suddenly stopped paying his pension. "We heard that same problem from many callers, so we made it the topic one day," al-Zubaidi explains. "And we invited (an official from) the pension directory to come on the show and hear the suffering."
Hani Haroon, a 29-year-old unemployed Baghdad resident, started listening to Sumer FM three years ago. "It is different from other stations," Haroon says. "They talk about the real issues that Iraqis care about. We need that. It gives people hope." Haroon calls the station often, but gets through only once in a while. "It's hard because so many people want to be heard," he said. Sumer takes about 11,000 listener phone calls each month.

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Radio station ordered closed in Mosul
The Associated Press November 1, 2008

BAGHDAD: Local authorities closed a newly opened radio station Saturday, accusing it of inciting violence and ethnic strife in the northern city of Mosul.

Al-Rashid radio was shut down because its programming was aimed at "sowing sedition and fueling tension" between Kurds and Arabs in the city, said Ismael Gouran, a Kurdish member of the local provincial council. The radio is linked to a Sunni Arab lawmaker, Osama al-Nujeifi, who is known for his fiery statements accusing the Kurds of working to annex Mosul to the three-province Kurdish self-ruled region of northern Iraq. "Today's measure is to silence patriotic voices and to please Kurdistan officials who want to get rid of any competitors in the coming provincial elections," said al-Nujeifi, who is a member of the secular bloc in parliament headed by former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi.
Al-Nujeifi said the station, which went on the air three months ago, had begun broadcasting programs supporting a Sunni Arab political group that plans to compete against the Kurds in next year's provincial elections.
The ruling council of Ninevah province, which includes Mosul, is controlled by Kurds because many Sunni Arabs boycotted the last regional elections in January 2005. That allowed the Kurds to win a big share of power in areas where they do not form a majority.
The Baghdad-based independent Journalistic Freedoms Observatory condemned the action against the station and called on the Iraqi government to allow Al-Rashid back on the air. Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad, is an ethically mixed city where al-Qaida and other Sunni insurgent groups still operate. U.S. commanders believe the insurgents feed off the undercurrent of tension between Arabs and Kurds, including Kurdish units of the Iraqi army that have been sent to the city to fight the extremists.

Voci FM dall'Irak, significati di libertà

Due flash di agenzia e una notizia di RWonline sulla situazione radiofonica interna all'Iraq. Le agenzie, Aswat al Iraq e AFP si occupano entrambe, con qualche piccola discrepanza, delle due stazioni FM aperte a Fallujah: Fallujah FM e Sawt al-Hur Fallujah. E' bello pensare che da quelle parti "la musica sia più forte delle pallottole". Anche se la musica non deve servire da alibi per le sofferenze inflitte, da tutte le parti, alla popolazione civile.
Invece RWonline propone un lungo reportage, con dovizia di dettagli tecnici, su Freedom Radio, il network FM di American Forces Network-Iraq. Tre piacevoli letture, con informazioni di frequenza che magari potrebbero tornare utili nella prossima stagione della propagazione E sporadica in caso di viaggi nel Mediterraneo orientale.
Quanto a Freedom Radio, Enduring Freedom e retoriche varie, mi permetto di consigliarvi una quarta lettura, assai più seria, sul Sole 24 Ore di oggi nel supplemento domenicale. La casa editrice Codice edizioni sta per pubblicare "La libertà di chi?", recente libro del linguista americano George Lakoff. Il Sole pubblica uno stralcio del saggio, che analizza una sottile problematico socio-linguistica: quella del significato del concetto di libertà imposto da otto anni di dominanza, negli USA, del pensiero "neo/teo-con". Il messaggio di Lakoff è che il conservatorismo è riuscito a imporre un significato profondo del termine "libertà", una sorta di "riprogrammazione" collettiva che riesce, sul piano elettorale, ad aggregare consenso su una politica costellata di errori e violazioni. Il pensiero di Lakoff è condensato in questo editoriale apparso sul Boston Globe nel 2006, data di uscita del libro. "Il linguaggio conta," sostiene lo scienziato, "perché può determinare il modo in cui pensiamo e agiamo." L'ultimo lavoro di George Lakoff è "Thinking Points: Communicating Our American Values and Vision", una esposizione di principi progressisti che funge come manuale di conversazione nelle discussioni con la "controparte". I Thinking Points si possono prelevare gratuitamente dal sito del Rockridge Institute, un think tank progressista. "L'America è in pericolo," si legge nella prefazione. "Rischia di essere dominata da una destra radicale e autoritaria che dice di essere conservatrice, come se stesse salvaguardando e promuovendo i valori americani. In realtà, li sta calpestando da anni." Solo l'America è in pericolo?

Falluja radio: when music is louder than bullets
Anbar - Voices of Iraq Sunday , 20 /01 /2008 Time 5:11:30

Anbar, Jan 20, (VOI) – Iraq's once restless city of Falluja has recently witnessed a relative calm that helped much headway with the city's services to be made, most significantly the inauguration of Falluja FM Radio. Abdul Majid Dahham al-Kubeisi, the radio's director, told Aswat al-Iraq, Voices of Iraq, (VOI) that Falluja FM Radio is affiliated with the Iraqi Media Network and broadcasts four hours a day on wave 99.5 FM from the network's local building.
"The fledgling radio station has well-equipped studios and staff," al-Kubeisi indicated, noting that transmission is now focusing on songs, public services, and the Holy Quran.
Badri Taama, a 52-year-old announcer in the station, said that Falluja's media men and residents have high expectations for the radio. "We seek to convey the residents' trouble and problems to officials and work out convenient solutions for them," Taama said.
"The only thing hindering the station from operating more effectively is the limited broadcasting hours (8:00 a.m.-noon), which causes us to lose a large portion of our audience due to frequent power cuts during this period of the day," Taama added. The radio has a staff of nine, including journalists and technicians, in addition to correspondents.
Muhammad Ahmed al-Samarraie, 33, outlined his ambitions for the station. "Despite the young age of the radio, I look forward to seeing it as everyone's favorite station," Samarraie said. "People here are working hard and overtime because they have a sense of responsibility," he added. "The programs broadcasted by the station only deal with educational, cultural, political, economic, and sports issues, in addition to the Holy Quran broadcast," he explained.
Jassim al-Duleimi, a 38-year-old sound technician in the radio, said that the station is taking its first steps in the media field. "The city has been torn by wars and we therefore need some time, as well as local authorities' assistance, in providing what the radio needs. We need solutions to the minor problems that we encounter, mainly the power cuts which cause us huge embarrassment," he said.
Falluja, the largest city in the Sunni Anbar province, lies 45 west of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. During the past few years, the city was a scene of armed clashes between al-Qaeda fighters and security forces. Security conditions in the city have massively improved since the establishment of an Awakening Council led by Sheikh Abdul Sattar Abu Risha, who was assassinated last year.

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Broadcasts beam messages of hope to battered Iraq city
Wed Dec 26, 10:22 PM

FALLUJAH, Iraq (AFP) - Three years after the Iraqi city of Fallujah was practically destroyed by a US assault, residents of the notorious battleground have found a new voice through their own TV and radio programmes. The former rebel bastion 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of Baghdad now boasts a broadcast centre where dozens of employees work frantically producing material for two radio stations and a television channel.
Despite a severe shortage of money and lack of expertise, the staff say they are determined to make programmes that express "the thoughts of freedom" and that will also help to counter what they call "Al-Qaeda ideology." Large parts of Fallujah remain in ruins after being pounded in 2004 during brutal fighting when US forces took on hardcore Sunni insurgents and Al-Qaeda fighters holed up in the city.
But like other parts of Al-Anbar province, Fallujah has in the past year seen its Sunni population turn against their former Al-Qaeda allies. And over the past six months residents have begun tuning in to independent radio and TV programmes made in the city with the support of the state-run and US-funded Iraqi Media Network. "Our programmes are prepared by the local people of Fallujah. They are diversified and deal with issues of the locals," said Abdul Majid Dahham, station manager of Fallujah FM, which broadcasts 16 hours a day.
Another station, Fallujah Sawt al-Hur or Free Voice of Fallujah broadcasts six hours a day, while the television channel has a slot of two hours every evening before 8:00 pm, when it links up with the state-run Al-Iraqiya channel.
An estimated 400,000 people live within the 20-kilometre radius covered by Fallujah TV, but no viewing figures for the station are available. Dahham is proud of all three stations' achievements but admits that the quality of the programming is often poor. "The educational programmes for children and cultural events for adults need to be improved," he said.
One Fallujah resident, Um Firas, said she would even volunteer to help out at the TV station if that would help to improve its output. "I am ready to work free of charge on these programmes in order to serve the students," she told AFP. "The educational programmes need to be made better."
Muna Abdul Salam, 20, an economics student in the University of Anbar, said he wanted "more programmes on art and sports" rather than too much politics. Amir Lateef, a police captain, said he was a great supporter of Fallujah TV, which he hoped would encourage young viewers away from the extremist Islamist influence of Al-Qaeda elements still at work in the city.
"The station must aim to positively influence the children who are affected by violence and Al-Qaeda ideology," he said. "The station shows good programmes but more can be done especially with regard to children's culture." He also said that the station needed to avoid showing violence and aggressive behaviour to the city's children who are already scarred mentally by what they have experienced.
Employees say that for Fallujah's fledgling TV and radio stations to survive and develop they must receive more funds from the government. "Despite the current modest output, the stations cover the whole of Fallujah and its suburbs," said Mohammed Sami, 26, a Fallujah TV correspondent. "I hope it gets government support so the station can serve people better. "We used to work in total secrecy in the first few weeks, avoiding risks and threats," he added. "The locals had no idea what we were doing, but now the situation is better than it was."
Free Voice of Fallujah radio has a team of 12 staff, including four women, who put together programmes for the city's residents. "We are working to provide information to locals that is especially aimed at discouraging violence," said station director Ali Hadi. "Our station is a local one because we understand Fallujah's problems and how they can be tackled."
The city's fledgling broadcasters still have to operate in a sensitive environment, however. "I enjoy working, but the surrounding situation is not trouble-free," said one female radio announcer from an orthodox Muslim family who wears a headscarf at work. And Fallujah FM's Dahham said the stations also faced political pressure from those who want to exploit them "for their own interests, and that affects our work."

‘Freedom Radio’ Plays Out in Iraq
From a ‘Make-Believe’ Compound, AFN-I Eases Real-War Stress by John Merli, 1.16.2008

While broadcasters around the world have focused on telling folks back home what’s happening on the ground in the war in Iraq, the uniformed reporters and on-air personalities of the Armed Forces Network-Iraq in Baghdad have a more urgent audience to serve: the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines of the multinational force on or near the front lines.
Day and night, its military and diplomatic audiences tune into what is dubbed “Freedom Radio,” broadcasting from its make-believe “Ocean Cliffs Compound” in the real-world scorching desert of Iraq. At AFN-I’s studios in the International Zone (also known as the Green Zone), a small crew of public affairs specialists serving as radio/TV producers from the U.S. Air Force and Navy — which rotate with the U.S. Army for AFN duties — tackles an ambitious roster of news and entertainment programming for those in harm’s way.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Jason “J.D.” David, AFN-I’s news director, said the medium of radio is playing a unique role in the combat zone, as radio has for other wars over the past 70 years. “Radio is certainly the most immediate and effective means to get information out there as quickly as possible, and the music, all the entertainment, as well.”

FM network

David said his studios are fortunate to be located inside the International Zone with the presence of the multinational force, and not just for security reasons. “We can check with other forces almost immediately when something big happens. If a bomb goes off somewhere in Iraq and other media are saying it’s ‘insurgents,’ that may not always be the truth. It may be just some random guy out there. People back home depend on [the networks] for coverage, but we’re here and so we can see what’s happening for ourselves and report to the troops here,” said David, who hails from Laurel, Md.
Freedom Radio airs a round-the-clock schedule of news, unclassified troop information, feature stories, and of course music in many genres, much of it requested song-by-song by military personnel in the field.
Much like any other network, Freedom Radio is heard on an array of FM frequencies throughout the region:

Baghdad, 1Kw on 104.1 and 107.7 FM
Kirkuk, 200w on 100.1 and 107.3 FM
LSA Anaconda (Balad, Iraq) 250w on 107.3 FM
Mosul, 1Kw on 105.1 FM
Q-West, 250w on 93.3 FM
Sinjar, 250w on 107.9 FM
Tallil, 200w on 100.1 and 107.3 FM
Tikrit, 1Kw on 93.3 FM

[continua]

Le due censure dei radioamatori iraqeni

Bell'articolo del Los Angeles Times sui radioamatori in Iraq. Sembra che per loro le cose vadano meglio rispetto al precedente regime, che teneva le trasmissioni amatoriali sotto ferreo controllo e impediva di conservare una radio trasmisttente nella propria abitazione. Anche se a raccontare queste cose è un OM che ha passato una settimana in galera dopo essere stato arrestato dagli americani ("mi hanno liberato con tante scuse, ma ho impiegato un mese per riavere indietro le apparecchiature"). Il problema è che con l'arrivo della "democrazia" dei radioamatori hanno cominciato a diffidare sia le autorità locali sia l'esercito di occupazione: entrambi sospettano che i ribelli delle varie fazioni possano servirsi delle frequenze assegnate. Nel marzo scorso questi sospetti hanno portato alla temporanea sospensione di ogni licenza. I poveri radioamatori iraqeni sono stati riautorizzati a trasmettere solo il 20 novembre scorso. Circa metà delle attuali licenze, secondo il sito della locale associazione, è assegnata a militari americani (anche loro non hanno potuto trasmettere durante gli 11 mesi di blocco). Possibile che il fatto di poter parlare alla radio faccia sempre così tanta paura?

In Iraq, amateur radio's voice is muted
Under Hussein, there was little freedom to 'ham.' Though the situation has improved, enthusiasts face suspicion from officials who fear insurgent activity. By Ann M. Simmons - January 14, 2008

BAGHDAD — Whenever he gets a spare moment away from his electronics repair shop, Abdul Karim Hadi sneaks off to what he calls the "radio shack" in the corner of his bedroom, flips a switch and escapes to the outside world. Hadi could use the Internet or a cellphone to connect with friends near and far, but his choice is decidedly more retro. "With ham radio, you can meet people around the world," said Hadi, 48, who has been "hamming" since 1978. "It's also a hobby you can do on your own. And once you have your own equipment, it's free." More important, at a time when most movie theaters and nightclubs are closed because of security concerns, "hamming" is a form of entertainment that can be pursued at home.
That wasn't always the case. Under Saddam Hussein's rule, ham radio enthusiasts had to report to government-sanctioned clubs, where minders listened in on their conversations. Since the dictator's ouster, they have faced suspicion from both U.S. troops and the Iraqi government that their transmissions are a tool of the insurgency. Since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, fewer than 50 of 150 or so ham radio enthusiasts who operated primarily in Baghdad have returned to their stations, Hadi said. He is among a small group of people who are trying to revive interest in the hobby and keep it alive.
"Many hams have not returned, even though they have a license," Hadi said. "Some have traveled outside Iraq; others are afraid to use their wireless. They think they will face problems from the American soldiers or the Iraqi police. I am trying to tell everyone that the situation is better now." Ham radio, also known as amateur radio, has been used both as recreation and a public service provider across the globe since at least the early 1900s. Operators typically use a transmitter and receiver to communicate with other enthusiasts in their home countries and abroad. They use various modes of transmission, including voice, Morse code and now personal computers. Voice transmissions continue to be the most common in Iraq, say local operators, who must be licensed by their government and receive a unique "call sign," to identify themselves on the air. Hadi's call sign is YI1AK.
During the Hussein years, ham radio operators could not use their wireless equipment at home. "Saddam would hang you if you were found with a transmitter at home," recalled Hadi. "They thought you were a spy if you had an antenna." As is the standard for ham radio operators worldwide, subjects such as politics, religion and business deals are off limits. But during the Hussein era, just hearing a voice coming over the airwaves from Europe, Asia, America and other countries in the Middle East made many Iraqi ham radio operators feel connected; and they considered themselves members of an exclusive club.
"We would talk about electronics, signal strengths, the weather forecast and personal details, such as your family," said Imad Yusef Dahi, 45, call sign YI1EYT, a ham radio operator since 1992. He has managed to connect with hams in Germany, France, Russia and Egypt. "It's a beautiful hobby," Dahi said. "You can communicate with people from all over the world. And you can talk as long as you want, for free." And regardless of modern technology, Dahi and other hams said there was something special about being able to send their own signal into the air.
"It's a great feeling when you're using equipment that you've put together yourself," said Azhar, 40, a ham radio operator for 15 years, whose call-sign is YI1FLY. He was reluctant to give his last name and was uneasy about giving details on his hobby for fear that he might say something that would get him into trouble. Hadi understands why such concerns still exist, despite the supposed freedom since Hussein's ouster. Some time after the 2003 invasion, U.S. soldiers came knocking at Hadi's door. They arrested him and confiscated his radio equipment, even though he had a valid license allowing him to own and use it. He spent a week in jail while an investigation was conducted. He was freed "with an apology," he said, but it took more than a month to get his equipment back. Hadi suspects that someone keen "to take revenge" had fingered him as a possible militant, and had accused him of using the radio equipment for criminal purposes.
And for eight months last year, Iraqi officials suspended all amateur radio activity in the country, citing security concerns. They feared insurgents might be using ham radio, local operators said. The irony was not lost on ham radio operators, who recalled that even though their transmissions were subject to eavesdropping by security agents under Hussein, it was rare for them to be taken off the air. Hadi hopes that now that he is back on the air, he will be able to persuade others to follow. And the message of the electronics technician transmits loud and clear: "You can return to ham radio," he says. "I will even find a station for you."