Tanzanian Association Oslo

Saudi woman blasts clerics in TV contest poem

Saudi poet Hessa Hilal lashed out at hard-line clerics' religious edicts in verse on live TV at a popular Arabic version of "American Idol."…more>>>>>

This clip seems to be the correct one of Hissa Hilal, not to be confused with another clip making the round on blogosphere which is actually one of Aydah Al Aarawi Al Jahani, a 2009 contestant. Our thanks to reader Elisa Van who supplies this link.

The poem on the chaos of subversive fatwas got Hissa Hilal into the final round of the contest.  A rough English translation of her poem is as follows:

I have seen evil from the eyes of the subversive fatwas in a time when what is lawful is confused with what is not lawful;

When I unveil the truth, a monster appears from his hiding place; barbaric in thinking and action, angry and blind; wearing death as a dress and covering it with a belt [referring to suicide bombing];

He speaks from an official, powerful platform, terrorizing people and preying on everyone seeking peace; the voice of courage ran away and the truth is cornered and silent, when self-interest prevented one from speaking the truth.

The final results will be known at the end of this month.  Hissa Hilal will be reciting her poem on the topic of media.  Can Hissa Hilal reproduce her winning form shown in the last round when the judges awarded her the highest score during the final?  Will Hissa Hilal’s peom on media be just as forceful and hard hitting as her poem on subversive fatwas?  Will Hissa Hilal be crowned the 2010 Million’s Poet?  Time will tell.

Source: GulfNews

Source: A Big Message.