South African Judge Adheres to Whites and Bans Rap Music
However, the alleged right-wingers must first buy portable radios - and batteries - for those inmates of Section A5 of Pretoria´s C-Max prison, who wish to continue listening to music.
The 13 alleged members of the extremist Boeremag or Afrikaner Force said the high-volume broadcasting of Metro FM, which mostly plays Rhythm and Blues, rap and South African kwaito music was a form of "psychological torture".
Why was a federal issue made of something that could have been resolved with a little bit of goodwill?
Judge Eberhardt Bertelsmann Judge Eberhardt Bertelsmann said the correctional services did not dispute that one of the accused, Kobus Pretorius, had suffered a nervous breakdown, with the loud music being a determining factor.
National sporting events would still be broadcast throughout the prison, the judge ruled.
The men, along with nine others, face a total of 42 charges, including high treason, murder, attempted murder, terrorism and the illegal possession of weapons.
Music upgrade
The prison authorities said they were upgrading the broadcasting system in C-Max and in a portion of Central Prison at a cost of nearly 1m rands ($135,000).
Individual speakers will be installed in cells so inmates can choose whether they wanted to listen to the communal system or not, however they will not be offered a choice of stations, unless they have their own radios.
The men are accused of organising a series of blasts last December
But the judge said that this matter should have been dealt with by the prison authorities.
"Why was a federal issue made of something that could have been resolved with a little bit of goodwill?" he asked.
The trial was supposed to start in May but has been repeatedly postponed.
Last month, a judge refused a request to make South Africa´s last white President FW de Klerk testify on the validity of the multi-racial constitution which ended apartheid.
They are accused of the murder of Claudia Mokone who was killed in a bomb blast in the black township of Soweto last December.
Prosecutors say they also conspired to kill Nelson Mandela by blowing up a car transporting the former president to a public event. www.rapstation.comhttp://www.rapstation.com/today_in_hiphop/#Radio Western, CHRW 94.7FM
[ This message was edited by: fahfee on 09-09-2003 23:07 ]
