Tag Archives: Mali

Mali shortwave relay site back on the air with CRI

(Source: Radio World)

China Radio International Recommits to Africa

Mali relay site near Bamako is back on air diffusing China Radio’s shortwave signal. The site carries CRI’s shortwave broadcasts for more than 20 frequency hours a day to Africa. The move has also benefited Mali’s own shortwave transmissions, which were reportedly suffering from weak signals and poor modulation. “The reactivation of the facility is in contrast to the shuttering of other shortwave sites on the continent, such as the Sentech facility in Meyerton, South Africa,” writes Hans Johnson.

Click here to read the full article at Radio World.

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Myke shares 2012 season of ShortWaveMusic

swm_tkuMyke, over at ShortWaveMusic, has made his entire 2012 season of ShortWaveMusic freely downloadable on SoundCloud.

This series was recorded from December 31, 2011 – January 16, 2012 throughout the West African country of Mali. The series contains some remarkable field recordings taken from both the shortwave and medium wave bands.

Note that Myke’s ShortWaveMusic series and travels are supported by Kickstarter donors. I don’t know where Myke’s travels will take him next year, but when the time comes we will post an announcement along with a link for supporters.

Now put on your headphones, close your eyes and you will be transported to Mali:

For full SoundCloud features, click here for the 2012 series on SoundCloud.

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VOA: Malian journalist attacked on air, listeners search and rescue

(Source: VOA News)

A Malian journalist who was hospitalized after being beaten by Islamist militants in the northern city of Gao Sunday says he was unconscious after the attack.

Speaking from his hospital bed Tuesday in Gao, Malick Maiga Aliou told VOA’s French To Africa service that men “armed to the teeth” entered the studios of radio Adar Koima during a live broadcast and dragged him into a car.

He says the gunmen beat him with rifle butts and other objects, accusing him of spreading lies about them.  Eventually, he says, they dumped him at a local cemetery where they stomped on him and left him for dead.

Local residents who heard the attack live on the radio organized a search for Aliou, who was found unconscious and taken to a local hospital.

The beating, Aliou’s third at the hand of Islamists, appeared to be punishment for reporting that local residents had prevented the amputation of a thief’s hand on Sunday.

The Malian journalist also contributes stories to the Voice of America.  VOA’s director David Ensor condemned the attack and applauded the local residents who came to Aliou’s aid.

The Islamist group MUJAO, which controls Gao, insists on imposing strict Islamist laws in the region under their control.  But local residents organized a protest Sunday to prevent the amputation of the young thief’s hand.

MUJAO and other Islamist groups took over control in northern Mali following the March coup in the capital Bamoko.

Last week, in the small Malian town of Aguelhok, another armed Islamist group, Ansar Dine, publicly stoned an unmarried couple.

Mali’s government has condemned the stoning as well as the attack on the journalist.

Malian interim President Dioncounda Traore has recently returned to Bamako after two months in Paris, recovering from a violent attack by opponents to his appointment.  He vowed the government will retake the north.

Fifteen-member regional group ECOWAS has proposed deploying more than 3,000 troops to help restore order in Mali.

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Music and sounds of Mali

Myke Dodge Weiskopf, who we’ve mentioned on the SWLing Post for his shortwave radio recordings, has informed us that he will be hosting a long-form radio show May-19-20th, showcasing live radio recordings from Mali. You can listen to the show online, or live (if you live near Cambridge, MA, USA).

Details from Myke:

I’ll be producing and hosting another long-form radio broadcast on the music and sounds of Mali for WHRB 95.3 FM, Cambridge, MA (USA). The broadcast is part of the biannual WHRB Orgy® tradition.

Mali is perhaps the most popular and influential hub of African music. This continuous, 22-hour-long broadcast will feature rare live recordings from more than a dozen of Mali’s finest homegrown musicians and bands, as well as extensive folkloric and regional music from the libraries of Malian state and community FM broadcasters. Recordings were made in January 2012 during a three-week overland journey ranging from the country’s capital, Bamako, to the legendary Saharan city of Timbuktu. Fans of Malian music, African community radio, and world folklore should consider this required listening.

Available via terrestrial FM (95.3 FM) or streaming online at www.whrb.org.

The details in short:

FROM HERE TO TIMBUKTU: The WHRB Mali Orgy®
WHRB 95.3 FM (Cambridge, MA) or www.whrb.org
START: Saturday, May 19 (1800 UTC / 1 PM EDT)
END: Sunday, May 20 (1600 UTC / 11 AM EDT)

Further details will be posted soon at www.maliorgy.info.

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