OSH, Kyrgyzstan – The regional court in Kyrgyzstan’s southern province of Osh has banned a controversial rap song because it allegedly incites "ethnic hatred" between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz residents.
The ruling on July 25 means that people responsible for playing "Osh City" could be arrested and face punishment.
Osh State University experts had asked the court to ban the song, which is performed in the Uzbek language.
The song started circulating over the Internet last month, around the second anniversary of the violent clashes between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in Osh.
The song laments dead ethnic Uzbeks and attacks Kyrgyz for alleged "cruelty."
More than 400 people were killed and thousands were displaced in the June, 2010, clashes in Osh and the neighboring region of Jalal-Abad.
The majority of victims were ethnic Uzbeks.
The ruling on July 25 means that people responsible for playing "Osh City" could be arrested and face punishment.
Osh State University experts had asked the court to ban the song, which is performed in the Uzbek language.
The song started circulating over the Internet last month, around the second anniversary of the violent clashes between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in Osh.
The song laments dead ethnic Uzbeks and attacks Kyrgyz for alleged "cruelty."
More than 400 people were killed and thousands were displaced in the June, 2010, clashes in Osh and the neighboring region of Jalal-Abad.
The majority of victims were ethnic Uzbeks.
