Baledweyn holds first concert in two and half decades

In a well decorated hall in Baledweyn town , Somali musicians staged a concert for the first time in 25 years, a sign of a marked improvement in security in the headquarter of Hiraan region.

Hundreds of Somali residents as well as the town’s senior officials, packed the hall on Saturday to attend an afternoon of song and dance to mark the recovered peace in the region.

Dressed in bright yellow scarves and capes, Somali women sang to the strumming of guitars as the audience applauded, tapped their feet on the steps and waved the Somali flag.

Baledweyn police, Ali Dhuuh Abdi Mahad speaking to Goobjoog News said that the concert translates and confirms the restored peace and the security of the town.

“Somali musicians staging the concert in Baledweyn’s hall for the first time in two and half decades marking a relative return to calm in the town” said Ali Dhuuh.

“We are very happy to sing inside Baledweyn today,” said one of the singers, sporting a red striped shirt and sunglasses after the concert.

He added “We have to concentrate on peace, education and progress – let’s forget the bad events we experienced.”

Many Somali artists, actors and singers have fled the violence over the last two decades, especially as Al-Shabaab cracked down on any forms of art.

Somalia has been mired in turmoil since warlords toppled dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, leaving militants, militia groups and clan leaders all fighting for control of parts of the anarchic country.