<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <html><head> <meta content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="Content-Type"> </head>Saw this Reuters item on another list, and thought that an unanswered (and unasked) question regarded the language of the books - perhaps it is too obvious that they are in Arabic. Nevertheless, in my few visits to bookstores in Cairo years ago I remember there being a lot of titles in English and at least a few in French. <br/><br/>All this brings to mind a question about the state of writing in and translation into Arabic. Not that long ago one would see articles purporting that more books were translated into Spanish or Greek (for example) in any given year than there were into Arabic in a much longer frame of time. Has that been changing such that enterprising booksellers in Benghazi can source a wide range of titles in Arabic for their customers? <br/><p>Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry</p><hr/><div><b>From: </b> Yvonne van Driel Krol <yvandrielkrol@gmail.com>
</div><div><b>Date: </b>Thu, 12 May 2011 14:54:33 +0200</div><div><b>To: </b>malilink<malilink@malilink.net>; msas mali<msas@maliwatch.org></div><div><b>Subject: </b>[msas] Khaddafi's Libya: education or indoctrination?</div><div><br/></div><div class="article primaryContent">
<h1>Books Gaddafi banned sell well in rebel-held Libya</h1>
<div class="timestampHeader">Wed May 11, 2011 10:59am GMT</div><div id="headerTools"> </div>
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<p> * East Libyans say Gaddafi kept them in ignorance <span id="midArticle_byline"></span></p>
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<p> * Book on politics, government among most popular </p>
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<p> By Mohammed Abbas</p><p><br></p>
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<p> BENGHAZI, Libya, May 11 (Reuters) - The revolution that
swept Muammar Gaddafi from power in east Libya has been a
bonanza for bookstores as curious readers stock up on titles
banned during his decades-long rule.</p>
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<p> Newly uncensored works on history and religion and books by
opposition exiles are most popular, say booksellers in the
eastern rebel stronghold of Benghazi.</p>
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<p> "People are thirsty for knowledge, to know about their
history," said bookseller Yusuf al-Muahaishi, who said sales had
doubled since mass protests prised much of east Libya from
Gaddafi's grip in mid-February.</p>
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<p> "Books about the history of Libya were banned or censored.
They mostly had to be about Gaddafi," Muahaishi said as he
served customers at the al Tamour bookshop in central Benghazi.</p>
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<p> Gaddafi is still in power in the capital Tripoli and most of
western Libya despite airstrikes by NATO forces. Rebel fighters
have made little headway after months of fighting.</p>
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<p> Under Gaddafi's four-decade rule, opposition was crushed,
power was concentrated in his hands and the education system
used to promote his Third Universal Theory, which sought to
steer a course between Islam and Socialism.<span id="midArticle_byline"></span></p>
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<p> Gaddafi banned political parties and set up a system for
direct rule by citizens via town hall committees. Critics say
the committees had no power in his centralised, authoritarian
state and were mere channels for his personal patronage.</p>
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<p> Booksellers say Gaddafi's drive to promote his thoughts and
philosophy -- partly through his own authorised bestseller, the
infamous "Green Book" -- meant heavy censorship or the banning
of books with other points of view.</p>
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<p> Historical works about Libya before the overthrow of King
Idris in 1969 were also taboo.</p>
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<p> "Demand is good, despite the economic troubles. The most
popular books are history books, and books by the exiled
opposition. People never used to come in before because they
thought censorship meant there was little worth buying," said
Mohammed Jarahi of the Dar wa Maktab al-Fadhel bookshop.</p>
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<p> Many religious books were illegal, booksellers said,
including those by hard-line Islamists, but also moderate texts.</p>
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<p> Under Gaddafi's rule, some vendors would sell illicit books
to select customers, risking lengthy prison sentence.</p>
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<p> CRISIS MANAGEMENT</p>
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<p> At Muahaishi's store, books on religion take pride of place
at the shop front, but the next customer bought two books on
constitutional law.<span id="midArticle_byline"></span></p>
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<p> He also picked up a free booklet left at the store by
activists keen to educate the public about constitutions.</p>
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<p> "We have lived 41 years of ignorance, so we have to educate
ourselves and others. We don't have a constitution yet, but we
will not have one thrust upon us without us being able to
understand it," said engineer Gebril Zletni.</p>
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<p> East Libya is now run by the Provisional Transitional
National Council (PTNC), a hastily-formed body that is
struggling to administer the region, fend off attacks by Gaddafi
loyalists and secure cash, food and medicine.</p>
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<p> To make matters more difficult, few Libyans have experience
of politics and civil administration given Gaddafi's tight grip
on power.</p>
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<p> Osama al-Tanashi, whose book and stationary shop is near the
council headquarters, said books on crisis management had been
selling well, as well as books on law and development.</p>
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<p> "Judges, academics and many members of the transitional
council are buying. Such people never bothered with buying books
here before because law and academia was heavily proscribed by
the government," he said.</p>
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<p> "In Gaddafi's time, we had no law. We're starting from
zero."
(Editing by Tom Pfeiffer and Andrew Heavens)
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