Authorities in Iran have closed down nine private music schools in and around the Iranian holy city of Qom, south of the capital of Tehran, angering the students, the official news agency IRNA reported Wednesday.
"Nine private music teaching centers have been closed in Qom and its province," IRNA said, emphasizing that there were few cultural activities in the city and young people had little to do during the summer vacation.
However, the conservative daily Jomhuri Eslami welcomed the move, which sources said concerned more than a quarter of the province's music schools. "The enemy has always used art and music to destroy the identity of our national culture," it claimed.
"Most young people study destructive and violent Western music in these schools, which become centers of corruption," the paper charged.
Meanwhile, local police chief Ahmad Moghassemi alleged without elaborating that some of the students "did not respect Islamic religious values". "These closures do not mean that we are against the teaching of music, but there are some offences which we must punish," he said.
The news agency also quoted the local Qom representative of the culture ministry, Mohammad-Mehdi Ahmadi, as saying that the schools affected had not had proper certificates. It is noteworthy to mention that teaching of music is generally encouraged in the Islamic Republic and Western music has been authorized for the past three years, but women are not allowed to sing solo on the radio or television, or in concerts where men are present. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
