Media house staff walk out as Somali radicals take control

The staff of Mogadishu’s Global Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) have abandoned work in protest against a takeover by a radical Islamist group.

The GBC employees walked out of their workplace in North Mogadishu on Wednesday when they disagreed with Hizbu Islam leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys on how to conduct the media house’s operations.

Hizbu Islam is one of the radical Islamist groups opposing the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.
The GBC workers rejected a directive from Sheikh Aweys compelling them to alter the media terminology and references for the various opposition groups.

Militia leaders

Sheikh Aweys and his Islamist militias took over GBC radio and TV stations about the same time al-Shabaab, the most radical Islamist group in Somalia, confiscated Horn Afrik media, a popular broadcaster in Mogadishu with TV and radio stations.

Flanked by militia leaders from Hizbu Islam, Sheikh Aweys instructed GBC staff to refer to TFG as the Dowladda Riddada (the faithless government) and to downplay any news concerning the government, while giving prominence to the Islamist cause of Hizbu Islam and al-Shabaab.

The workforce was told that the two movements were truly Islamic forces fighting an un-Islamic government.

No alternative

Most of the 20 staff members of GBC, including two women reporters, indicated that they could not work under the new circumstances.

On Monday, GBC director-cum-owner Yusuf Ahmed Ghelle, held a closed-door meeting with Sheikh Aweys. After several hours, Mr Ghelle announced that he was giving the radio and TV stations to Hizbu Islam.

Mr Ghelle indicated that he had no alternative but to respond to pressure from the leaders and militias of Hizbu Islam.

Major changes immediately announced at GBC headquarters included the renaming of the company as The Islamic Media of GBC.