Much of the news today from Libya is sad, with reports that as many as 200 protesters have been killed by government forces who are using live ammunition–some large caliber–on civilians trying to exercise their human rights to free speech and peaceful protest. However there are also signs that protestors are finding ways to break the information blockade the Qaddafi government has attempted to put in place. According to Foreign Policy’s Passport blog, on Friday protestors in Libya’s second largest city, Benghazi, site of the worst violence, took control of a radio station and have been broadcasting. The broadcast is available online, but it’s unclear if the station is also broadcasting terrestrially. Press reports being published as I write this indicate that protestors have taken over much or all of Benghazi.
Tuning in the broadcasts do sound amateur and rushed, with music and some reports being very distorted and overdriven–this does not sound like a commercial or state radio broadcast. As a dreadfully monolingual American I don’t speak Arabic, so unfortunately I can’t comment more on the content of the broadcast.
At this moment, 5:15 CST / 11:15 UTC, the station is rebroadcasting state television which is airing a live address by Muammar Qaddafi’s sun. The BBC’s Radio Five is broadcasting a live translation of the address.
