Jordan bans Lebanese rock band fronted by gay singer

Jordan has banned a concert by a Lebanese rock band that has a gay singer and has been accused in the kingdom of promoting homosexuality and inciting political revolts.

Lawmaker Bassam al-Battush said Wednesday he had been told by the Amman governor that this week's concert at a Roman theatre by the group Mashrou' Leila had been called off.

"The written justification officially provided is that the performance would have been at odds with what the ministry of tourism viewed as the 'authenticity' of the site," the band said on its Facebook site.

It said the group, whose singer Hamed Sinno is openly homosexual, a criminal offence in Arab countries, had been "unofficially informed that we will never be allowed to play again anywhere in Jordan due to our political and religious beliefs and endorsement of gender equality and sexual freedom".

The band, which has toured several countries, performed in Dubai, and has gigs lined up in North America, condemned what it called Jordan's "censorship" and stressed that it had played the very same Amman venue three times in the past.

For Battush, however, the musicians were trying to propagate "ideas which are foreign to our society and our Arab-Muslim culture" with their lyrics about sex, homosexuality, Satanism and "revolts against governments and societies".

The six-member band says on its Facebook page that "with their distinct approach to storytelling and orchestration, they have crafted some of the most melancholic ballads and raucous anthems in contemporary alternative Arabic music".

Source :AFP