Poet appeals 7 year ban

 

The case of the Saudi poet who was banned recently by courts from reciting his poems for seven years has taken a new direction, with the man last week filing an appeal at Jeddah District Court, sources which did not want to be identified told a local newspaper.

 In the appeal, he requested the court to release him from the reconciliation terms between him and his brothers, claiming that his brothers had taken advantage of the reconciliation to discredit his mental and psychological conditions. According to the poet, he has several medical reports issued by psychiatric hospitals that confirm he is not mentally ill.

 The poet mentioned in his appeal a number of popular TV channels that hosted him or aired some of his poems during the last five years.

 The case dates back to a lawsuit filed by the poet's brothers, who sought the help of the district court in Jeddah to stop him from writing or reciting poetry. They said their poetry-loving brother was an embarrassment for the family and the tribe, and his lyrics had made them the laughingstock of their tribe.

 The judge banned the poet from reciting for seven years. He also referred the poet and his brothers to a reconciliation committee for an amicable solution to the row, where the family came to terms with the poems and the poet.

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Andrew: How does your family approach your writing - with pride or scorn? I find the more I am published, the more my relatives appreciate my work. Is this universal?