--------------xxxxxxxxxx CRW 211 xxxxxxxxxx-------------- CLANDESTINE RADIO WATCH 211 Jul 31, 2006 CRW is the biweekly online magazine for ClandestineRadio.com (CRC), the Web's only portal on clandestine broadcasting and subversive media. CRW : http://www.schoechi.de/crw.html http://www.ClandestineRadio.com/crw/ CRC : http://www.ClandestineRadio.com GCW : http://www.globalcrisiswatch.com Martin Schoech, Editor in Chief, Eisenach, East Germany Nick Grace, CRW Washington & CRC, Washington, DC, USA Richard Lafayette, CRW Midwest, Stillwater, MN, USA Marwan Soliman, CRW Middle East Takuya Hirayama, CRW Japan ------------xxxxxxxxxx Breaking News xxxxxxxxxx---------------- LEBANON : Voice of Lebanon resurrected + many more reports AFGHANISTAN : Once media haters, Taliban is now media savvy ............................................................... LEBANON : Voice of Lebanon resurrected + many more reports Lebanon/Israel: Watchdog condemns "inadmissible" attacks on Al-Manar, Al-Nour Text of report in English by Egyptian news agency MENA Geneva, 17 July: The Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) [Swiss-based NGO] holds the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) responsible for the destruction of the headquarters of Al-Manar TV station in Lebanon and the bombing of the radio station Al-Nour, according to a statement issued by the PEC on Monday [17 July]. The PEC, in its strong condemnation of those attacks, classifies them as targeted attacks. PEC President Hedayat Abdel Nabi stressed that such attacks, whatever the media's political or religious convictions, are inadmissible. The PEC believes that statements are not enough, and that targeted attacks against the media must be brought to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as war crimes or to any competent international court. In the midst of such destruction, the PEC believes that Lebanon has other priorities at the moment to deal with, and therefore requests the Arab League and the Arab Federation of Journalists, on behalf of the Al-Manar and Al-Nour TV and Broadcasting [as received], to take their case against the IDF to the ICC or any other competent international court. Six journalists in Lebanon were injured during the current Israeli attacks, three from New TV. Reporter Bassel Al-Aridi, cameraman Abd Khayyat and assistant cameraman Ziad Sarwan were injured when their vehicle was hit by shots fired from an Israeli helicopter as they crossed a bridge in the south of the country, where they had gone to cover the fighting. According to Reporters Without Borders, this took place during an Israeli air raid aimed at cutting lines of communication and destroying bridges. New TV said: "The three journalists did not hear the helicopter arrive and do not remember what happened after the shots were fired, recovering consciousness in hospital." The station added that their vehicle was clearly marked with the New TV logo. One of the injured journalists said the New TV vehicle sustained more damage than any other, "which suggests to us that it was a targeted attack against our vehicle". Three employees of Al-Manar, the TV station operated by the Lebanese branch of Hezbollah, sustained minor injuries earlier when the station in the Shi'i suburb of Haret Hreik in south Beirut came under attack by an Israeli air raid. According to news reports issued Sunday [16 July], the station's building was destroyed, however its broadcasting was not interrupted. Another Al-Manar correspondent was meanwhile hit during the bombardment of Qasmiye Bridge in the south of the country yesterday. International Federation of Journalists' (IFJ) General Secretary Aidan White commented on these developments by saying that the IFJ's concern here is that when one side decides to take out a media organization because they regard its message as propaganda, then all media are at risk. "In conflict situations, unarmed journalists cannot be treated as combatants, irrespective of their political affiliations," he stressed. Finally, the PEC also strongly condemns the shooting of Palestinian photographer Mohammad Az Zanoun, shot by Israeli forces while taking photographs in Gaza during the recent Israeli military operations. Source: MENA news agency, Cairo, in English 1442 gmt 17 Jul 06 (BBCM Jul 17, 2006) Lebanon: Al-Nur radio programme content 19 Jul The following programme content was observed to be broadcast by the Al-Nur [Light] radio station, affiliated to Lebanon's Hezbollah, on 19 July. Throughout its transmission span Al-Nur broadcast patriotic songs which glorified the resistance "which is fighting on behalf of the nation," and praising Hezbollah Secretary General Hasan Nasrallah. News bulletins and news summaries were broadcast hourly, which included correspondent reports from around Lebanon and roundups of military actions and diplomatic activities. Breaking news on the latest Israeli and Hezbollah military actions was, on occasion, attributed from "the operations room of the Islamic resistance". Al-Nur also broadcast press reviews and phone-in programmes, during which callers condemned the Israeli attacks and vowed support for the resistance. A caller from Tyre said the morale of people in the city was high. Interviews with press commentators and analysts included comment that Israel's attack on civilians was a "proof of defeat and weakness." At 0545 gmt, the station broadcast an excerpt of a speech by Nasrallah, in which he extended greetings to the "mujahidin," saying we "pin all hopes on them." Al-Nur later broadcast excerpts from previous speeches by Nasrallah, who vowed the resistance will not give up their weapons. Source: Al-Nur radio, Beirut, Arabic 19 Jul 2006 (BBCM Jul 19, 2006) Info war goes personal with voicemail and text message Clancy Chassay in Tyre Monday July 24, 2006 The Israeli forces have also resurrected the old Voice of Lebanon radio station, once operated by Israel's military ally the South Lebanon Army before it was defeated by Hizbullah in 2000. Previously funded by Israel, frequency 103.7 is once again broadcasting the Israeli line. "Why do those people blame Israel for defending itself against terrorism?" the commentator asks in Arabic. "Why should we let terrorists bomb our homes?" Full report (Registration required): http://media.guardian.co.uk/newmedia/story/0,,1827575,00.html (Guardian, London Jul 24, 2006 via M.Barraclough-G for CRW) Sounds of destruction and hate: Listening to the Lebanon-Israel conflict on shortwave and Web radio http://www.radionetherlands.nl/features/media/me060724 (via M.Ritola-FIN Jul 25, 2006 in swprograms-ML) BBCM ANALYSIS: ISRAEL STEPS UP "PSYOPS" IN LEBANON | Editorial analysis by Peter Feuilherade of BBC Monitoring on 24 July 2006. From mass targeting of mobile phones with voice and text messages to old-fashioned radio broadcasts warning of imminent attacks, Israel is deploying a range of old and new technologies in Lebanon as part of the psychological operations ("psyops") campaign supplementing its military attacks. According to US and UK media outlets - including The Guardian, the Los Angeles Times and Time magazine - Israel has reactivated a radio station to broadcast messages urging residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate the region. Some reports have named the station as the Voice of the South. The Army of South Lebanon, a Christian militia backed by Israel, operated a radio station called Voice of the South from Kfar Killa in southern Lebanon in the 1980s and 1990s. The station closed down in May 2000 when Israeli forces withdrew from southern Lebanon. Website offers cash for tip-offs The Israeli paper Ma'ariv on 23 July reported the appearance of a website called All 4 Lebanon http://all4lebanon.org which offered payment for tip-offs from Lebanese citizens "that could help Israel in the fight against Hezbollah". According to Ma'ariv the site, with content in Arabic, English and French, had been set up by "Israeli intelligence units". "We appeal to everyone who has the ability and the desire to uproot the sore called Hezbollah from your heart and from the heart of Lebanon..." the paper quoted the website as saying in Arabic. On its English-language page, the site says: "Whoever is able and willing to help Lebanon eradicate Hezbollah's evil and get back its independence, freedom and prosperity is hereby invited to contact us at one of the addresses listed below: Telephone 00-88-16-214-65627. Email: info @ all4lebanon.org " It adds: "For your own safety, please contact us from places where no one knows you." The Arabic wording is identical to that on leaflets which Israeli aircraft have been dropping over Beirut and the south of Lebanon. The leaflets called on people to "remove the sore known as Hezbollah from the heart of Lebanon". According to Reuters news agency, an Israel Defence Forces spokeswoman said the rewards "could be a range of things, such as cash or a house". It was not clear how such items would be delivered or exactly what information Israel wanted, Reuters noted. Mobile aggression On Friday 21 July, residents of southern Lebanon reported receiving recorded messages on their mobile phones from an unknown caller. The speaker identified himself as an Israeli and warned people in the area to leave their homes and head north. Dubai-based news channel Al-Arabiya TV reported that the recorded messages also "held the Lebanese government responsible for the abduction of the two Israeli soldiers, and called on Lebanon to set them free." Inquiries by Lebanon's Communications Ministry revealed that the calls had come exchanges in Italy and Canada, but had originated in Israel. According to the US magazine Time, Israel has been targeting SMS text messages at local officials in southern Lebanon, urging them to move north of the Litani river before Israeli military operations intensified. The London Guardian newspaper said mobile phone users in Lebanon were regularly receiving messages to their phones which purported to be news updates, attempting to discredit Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah or his party. Satellite warfare next? As Israel broadens its psyops activities, it also continues to attack media targets using conventional military means. Air raids on Saturday 22 July hit transmission stations used by Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV, Future TV and the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC). A technician working for LBC was reported killed. On 23 July, a convoy of journalists from Lebanese and pan-Arab TV channels was attacked by Israeli planes while on a tour of southern Lebanon; no injuries were reported. According to an unconfirmed report by Egypt's Middle East News Agency (MENA), Israel managed on 23 July "to intercept the satellite transmissions of Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV channel for the third successive day, replacing it with Israeli transmissions that reportedly showed Hezbollah command sites and rocket launching pads which Israel claimed it has raided". Replacing a TV station's picture with output you want the audience to see is more difficult to achieve than jamming. Al-Manar TV has three satellite signals, one on Arabsat 2B at 30.5 degrees east, one on Badr 3 at 26 degrees east and one on Nilesat 102 at 7 degrees west. On Badr 3 and NileSat, Al-Manar is broadcast alongside other TV stations in a multiplexed or combined digital signal. While it would be technically feasible to replace one station's output, all the other stations in the multiplex would be taken off the air too. The technical parameters of the original station would need to be exactly duplicated by the interloper. Source: BBC Monitoring research 24 Jul 06 Posted: 25 Jul 2006 (via kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD-ML) LEBANON/ISRAEL: ANTI-HEZBOLLAH RADIO MASHRIQ MONITORED Radio Mashriq (also rendered as Machrek, meaning East] was monitored by BBC Monitoring via internet audio on Friday 28 July. The Arabic-language station is anti-Hezbollah but is generally measured in its tone. It was also heard to announce transmissions on 756 kHz mediumwave, AM, which it is believed can be heard in the Lebanon/Israel border region. At 1200 gmt there was a station identification - idha`at almachrek - followed by a brief news bulletin. The news bulletin covered latest statements/movements of Bush, Rice, Blair, UN envoy, the French Foreign Minister and an Israeli spokesman.At 1204 there was a 20-minute monologue, by phone from Washington D.C., by Mr Harb (first name in Arabic indistinct) the secretary-general of the International Lebanese Committee for the Implementation of Resolution 1559. Internet checks suggest his name is Tom Harb. He spoke on 18/19 May at the first annual convention in Washington of the World Council of the Cedars Revolution. From 1224 to 1228 there was a commentary about Al-Manar TV, referred to several times as the “TV of hot air and lies”. There were also references to Hezb al-Shaitan (party of the devil) and links with Tehran and Syria, knocking a report that morning by a named Al-Manar TV correspondent from southern Lebanon. This commentary was repeated at 1313. At 1236 there was a one-minute commentary/recital wondering how long Lebanon will remain subject to an Iranian-Syrian agenda. From 1249 to 1305 there was a political commentary on the current situation and its background. The transcript of some of these commentaries, such as the one at 1249 on 28 July today, are posted on the website http://www.almachrek.org - click on Hassad and New Machrek links on the right of the page. History of similar stations Similar stations have been heard before on 756 kHz in this region. In December 2000 a radio initially identified itself as "Experimental Radio from the Mediterranean Basin". When surveyed in October 2001, news and commentaries had a pro-Israel, anti-Syria and anti-Iraq slant. The radio criticized Palestinian and Hezbollah "terrorism" and dealt with Arab issues and Lebanese domestic politics. Other programmes contained Arab songs and modern Arab music. At that time the radio gave a website of carmelnews.org - a Washington-based pro-Israeli website, which now has a hyperlink to almachrek.org. The station was also reported to be on the air briefly in November 2004, according to the Islam Online website. The same frequency was previously used by Voice of the South - a radio station operated by the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army since July 1985 from Kafr Killa in southern Lebanon. That station closed in May 2000 when the Israeli army withdrew from southern Lebanon.) (Source: BBC Monitoring research 28 Jul 06 via A.Sennit-HOL in Media Network blog via DXLD 6-112) ISRAELI INTELLIGENCE INTERRUPTING AL-MANAR TV’S TERRESTRIAL SIGNALS IN LEBANON | Text of report by Jackie Hugi published by web version of Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv on 30 July The Israel Defence Forces [IDF] Intelligence Corps succeeded in breaking into the broadcasts of Al-Manar, Hezbollah’s television station, and inserting provocative messages into them. The jamming includes a picture of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hasan Nasrallah, with the Arabic inscription “Your Day is Near” superimposed over it. In another clip, the Intelligence Corps includes a message for viewers: "The State of Israel declares that Hasan knows the truth, but as his wont he chooses to drag Lebanon into war and destruction." Above Nasrallah`s picture is a banner headline: "How Many Days Longer?" The Israeli clip pushes Al-Manar’s broadcasts off the air for some minutes, and in effect takes over the screen. The target audience is viewers in Lebanon only, since this means of psychological warfare is only being employed in the station’s terrestrial broadcasts, which are picked up in Lebanon by antenna. The channel’s satellite broadcasts, which are picked up by dish by millions of viewers in Lebanon and around the world, were not penetrated. The IDF Spokesman’s Office confirmed that this was indeed IDF activity. (Source: NRG Ma’ariv website, Tel Aviv, in Hebrew 30 Jul 06 via BBC Monitoring) (via A.Sennit-HOL in Media Network blog via DXLD 6-114) ............................................................... AFGHANISTAN : Once media haters, Taliban is now media savvy IndiaeNews.com July 23, 2006 http://indiaenews.com/2006-07/15839-media-haters-taliban-savvy.htm Kabul - The Taliban seems to have learnt its lessons fast in the use of media as a force multiplier in its attempt to capture the heart and soul of the Afghan population. It has come a long way from the total revulsion to movies, radio, music, television, videos and photographs of any living creature, even animals, which were considered taboo during their five-year rule in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. Radio and TV were banned and anybody found viewing a video or listening to a radio was flogged. Realising the power of the media in its psychological battle, the Taliban now keeps media organisations up to date on its activities and these are broadcast on different radio and television channels. The Taliban not only produces and freely distributes high-quality audio and videocassettes and other material, but its ranks also watch videos of rousing speeches and Taliban 'attacks' and 'sacrifices' for the 'holy cause'. Most of the VCDs circulated during the last few months have logos of three major studios - Omat (Nation) Productions, Manbaul-Jihad (Source of Jihad) and Abdullah Videos. These fictitious units produce videos for the Taliban - and probably also for Al Qaeda - in Arabic, Urdu and Pashto languages that are aimed at potential sympathisers in southern Afghanistan and the adjoining Pakistan tribal belt and Arab extremists. The videos show images of Taliban 'warriors' killed in the 'holy war' or of alleged spies 'confessing' before their heads are chopped off. These are meant to play on the deep ethnic and religious pride of emotionally charged young minds to net them as recruits. One kind preaches the religious rhetoric of the anti-foreigner jehad that brought the Soviet army to its knees in Afghanistan in the 1980s and is now being used against the US-led coalition forces. Another plays to Arab extremists, who despise the US and the West for their attitude towards the Islamic world, including Afghanistan, the Palestinians, Iran and Iraq. The videos, secretly handed out person to person, often start with a religious cappella and verses from the Quran. There are images of sophisticated US military planes and armoured vehicles juxtaposed with the Taliban's low-tech small arms and homemade bombs stuffed with nails, nuts and bolts. New Taliban recruits are shown training in difficult terrain and under harsh conditions, while messages from Al Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al Zawahiri boom out promising success and, for 'martyrs', paradise. Every video includes interviews with purported Taliban commanders who claim to have shot down US helicopters or to have killed US or Afghan soldiers. Some videos show gruesome documentary footage of what are termed 'civilian casualties' of US bombings in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan, or of Christians chopping off the heads and arms of Muslims in Indonesia's religiously tense Poso district. Their targeted audience is a less-educated section of the population with little power of political analysis and which reacts emotionally. The images often work well to arouse passions, firing up a feeling for the militants' cause. The government lacks an effective strategy 'not to censor but to guide the news to the truth,' admits Defence Ministry spokesman, General Mohammad Zahir Azimi. 'The psychological battle to win the mind is very important - sometimes it can even change the outcome of a war,' Azimi added. The Taliban fills that void by even claiming responsibility for attacks that they may have had no part in, with many analysts saying it is not certain if it was behind a recent series of minor bombings in the capital Kabul. The Taliban is often too happy to claim credit for anything. Taliban videos, magazines and website (www.alemarah.org) aside, its spokesmen are happy to answer queries all the time while their counterparts in the government can be less accessible. The Afghan interior ministry, meanwhile, has barred provincial authorities from talking to the media. And, with Taliban statements sometimes grabbing headlines, the government last month issued 'guidelines' to local news outlets that barred interviews with Taliban leaders and criticism of foreign troops - a move that attracted wide condemnation and backfired. The goodwill that met the new internationally acked government of President Hamid Karzai is ebbing away as security deteriorates and corruption persists. All the while the Taliban's propaganda planners - finely tuned to the complicated social, ethnic and religious sensitivities of this country - are capitalising on every weakness, playing on Afghans' cherished notions of religion and liberty from foreign occupation. Their sophisticated campaign is beyond the capacity of the average illiterate Taliban fighter, said a high-ranking government official, who refused to be identified. 'There are big hands and organisations behind them,' he said. 'To gather data, footage and intelligence and reproduce them for Taliban interests is not what the barefoot illiterate Taliban can do in caves and mountains. It is done in cities where they have backers.' (IndiaeNews.com Jul 23, 2006 vi N.Grace-DC-USA for CRW) ------------xxxxxxxxxx Schedules xxxxxxxxxx-------------------- Schedules - Diverse Updated A-06 of DTK T-Systems. Part one - daily transmissions: [non clandestines removed -CRW] IBC Tamil Radio: 0000-0100 7315 WER 250 kW / 120 deg to SoAs Tamil Radio Free Asia (RFA): 0100-0300 11975 WER 250 kW / 060 deg to SoEaAs Tibetan Radio Liberty (RL): 0200-0300 9775 WER 250 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Persian Radio Farda 0400-0500 15255 WER 250 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Persian Radio Farda 0500-0700 9510 WER 250 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Persian Radio Farda 1200-1300 15205 WER 250 kW / 090 deg to EaEu Russian 1500-1700 9725 JUL 100 kW / 050 deg to EaEu Belorussian 1600-1700 13815 WER 250 kW / 060 deg to CeAs Turkmen 1900-2000 9650 WER 250 kW / 090 deg to CeAs Tatar Minivan (Independent) Radio: 1600-1700 13620 JUL 100 kW / 090 deg to SoAs Dhivehi Democratic Voice of Burma (DVOB): 2330-0030 9490 WER 125 kW / 090 deg to SoEaAs Burmese (DX Mix News, Bulgaria, Jul 20, 2006 via DXLD 6-106) Updated A-06 of DTK T-Systems. Part one - non-daily transmissions: [non clandestines removed -CRW] Radio Waaberi: 1330-1400 17550 JUL 100 kW / 160 deg Fri to EaAf Somali Voice of Oromiya Independence: 1500-1530 15650 JUL 100 kW / 160 deg Sat to EaAf Oromo/Amharic Radio Huriyo: 1630-1700 11865 JUL 100 kW / 140 deg deg Tue/Fri to EaAf Somali Voice of Oromo Liberation (Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo): 1700-1800 13830 JUL 100 kW / 160 deg Tue-Sun to EaAf Oromo Voice of Democratic Path of Ethiopian Unity: 1900-2000 15565 WER 250 kW / 120 deg Wed/Sun to EaAf Amharic 1900-2000 15565 JUL 100 kW / 130 deg Fri to EaAf Amharic Radio Republica: 2300-0400 5910 NAU 100 kW / 285 deg Mon-Fri to CeAm Spanish (DX Mix News, Bulgaria, Jul 25, 2006 via DXLD 6-109) ............................................................... Schedules - BELARUS Radio Racja From 1 August, Radio Baltic Waves International (RBWI) will provide a rebroadcast of Radio Racja (Poland) in Belarusian on Sitkunai 666kHz (500kW ND) from 1700-1900 UTC. The lease is possible, since Lithuanian Radio 1 uses 666kHz only until 1700 UTC. (B.Trutenau-LTU Jul 26, 2006 in mwdx-ML) ............................................................... Schedules - SOMALIA Radio Mustaqbal Deleted transmissions of Radio Mustaqbal via VT Communications: 0600-0630 on 15515 DHA 250 kW / 240 deg to EaAf Somali Mon-Thu/Sat 0635-0705 on 15515 DHA 250 kW / 240 deg to EaAf Somali Mon-Thu/Sat 0710-0740 on 15515 DHA 250 kW / 240 deg to EaAf Somali Mon-Thu/Sat 0745-0815 on 15515 DHA 250 kW / 240 deg to EaAf Somali Mon-Thu/Sat (DX Mix News, Bulgaria, Jul 25, via WOR 1323 in DXLD 6-109) So are they totally gone, or moved to some other provider?? Note the odd schedule, with 5-minute breaks and odd start times; repeating the same show? Trying to refresh background on this station, I consult http://www.clandestineradio.com/intel/station.php?id=168&stn=677 which I fear has not been updated in a few years [.., probably yes :-( -CRW] But there is a lot more info on page 526 of the WRTH 2006, with its Washington DC address, under ETHIOPIA, since Somalia was only its secondary target. (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 25, 2006 in DXLD 6-109) ------------xxxxxxxxxx Logs xxxxxxxxxx------------------------- Logs - CAMEROON Radio Free Southern Cameroons 15695 R.Free Southern Cameroons Jul 16 *1800-1811 35443 English, 1800 sign on with IS, ID, Opening music, Theme song, Talk. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 16, 2006 in JAP 430) 15695, R Free Southern Cameroons, 1805-1845, Su Jul 16, report from the Nigerian Tribune about Ambazania ("The Southern Cameroons Peoples Organisation has released its political and economic blueprint for the Southern Cameroons when it becomes independent. Under this blueprint, the country shall be known as the Republic of Ambazania"(Tribune)). Nice tribal songs. Fair. (F.Krone-DNK Jul 16, 2006 in DX Window 303) 15695kHz Radio Free Sothern Cameroons via Russia. July 23 at 1800(S/on)-1835. SINPO35333. S/on with music & ID in English as "This is Radio Free Southern Cameroons, broadcasting from Buea on 25 meter band short wave...7pm to 8 pm local time." Male talk & local songs followed. (I.Nagatani-J Jul 23, 2006 in JAP 431) ............................................................... Logs - CHINA Minghui Radio 11700, Minghui R/Falun Gong, 1520-1600*, Su Jul 16, Chinese talk and longish closing ceremony by male and female alternating, Minghui mentioned (like on its web-site) and 6 peeps before closing. Chinese music jammer closed exactly same time! Equal level on the two when I tuned in, but Minghui became the stronger before close. (F.Krone-DNK Jul 16, 2006 in DX Window 303) Voice of Tibet 17550 Voice of Tibet, 15:35-15:40, escuchada el 23 de Julio en Tibetano a locutor con comentarios, se aprecia con débil seńal, fuertemente atorada por emisión jamer musical con ópera China, ésta emisión jamer sufre fuertes desvanecimientos, incluso silencios que permiten escuchar con mejor claridad a La Voz del Tibet, SINPO 22432. (J.Miguel Romero Romero-E Jul 23, 2006 in CDX-ML) V. of Tibet, via Dushanbe (presumed), 17563, 1137 16 July, talk in presumed Tibetan, songs; better on USB with sgtrong Chinese music jammer on 17560; SIO 333 (T.Rogers-G, in BDXC Communication via DXLD 6-115) ............................................................... Logs - CUBA Radio República 27/7 0120 5910.0 R. Republica, Nauen,Germania,SS,interviste. MB (in sottofondo c'era il segnale d'intervallo della DW a rotazione continua. Problema tecnico o nuovo tipo di jamming???). (L.Botto Fiora-I Jul 27, 2006 in ForumRadio-ML) ............................................................... Logs - ERITREA Voice of Liberty 15260 Voice of Liberty, 16:15-16:25, escuchada el 23 de Julio en idioma Tigrinya a locutora con boletín de noticias con referencias al Presidente de Somalia, segmento musical y cuńa, SINPO 34443. (J.Miguel Romero Romero-E Jul 23, 2006 in CDX-ML) Nota: En el actual conflicto que se vive en Somalia, Eritrea apoya con armamento a la Union de Cortes Islamicas que actualmente controla la ciudad de Mogadishu, capital de Somalia, mientras que el actual gobierno de transicion se encuentra basado en la ciudad de Baidoa y actualmente estan apoyados por Etiopia, razon por la cual las milicias islamicas han amenazado con comenzar una "guerra santa" contra Etiopia. Todo esto lleva a que en el espectro de programas se utilicen las ondas de radio una vez más, en pro y en contra de determinadas situaciones. (G.I.Barrera-ARG Jul 31, 2006 in ConDig 378) ............................................................... Logs - ETHIOPIA Tensae Ethiopian Voice of Unity 15660 Tensae Ethiopian V.of Unity Jul 18 1510-1522 35443 Amharic, Talk and music, ID at 1511. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 18, 2006 in JAP 430) R Voice of the Ethiopian National United Front (ENUF) 11840, R Voice of the Ethiopian National United Front (ENUF) (p), via Samara, 1740-1800*, Su Jul 16, Amharic talk and many African Horn songs, weak and fading when I tuned in 1740 but became stronger and stronger and was fair up to 1800. (F.Krone-DNK Jul 16, 2006 in DX Window 303) Voice of Democratic Alliance 9560.54 V.of Democratic Alliance via R.Ethiopia Jul 18 1528-1538 33433 Tigrigna and Afar?, Ethiopian pops, 1530 IS, ID. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 18, 2006 in JAP 430) Voice of Ethiopian People 11840 Voice of Ethiopian People via Samara (per TDP) July 29. *17oo-1730 Noted at 1650 with 800 hertz test tones, with sign-on at at 17oo with HoA fanfare, then opening ID, mention of frequency (kilohertz). Most of the program consisted of commentary talks, one in particular was the words Abdallah ...De-row (later found out that this Ministry was assassinated) The program was intermixed with HoA musical selections. Noted @ 1722 the words 'Daily Feature' in EG! (so I take it this segment was the last news) Noted to 1730 . Signal was quite good, dispute the noise level. (E.Kusalik-AB-CAN Jul 29, 2006 for CRW) Voice of Ethiopian Unity 15565, Voice of Ethiopian Unity (pres.), 1902, Su Jul 16, instrumental tune into Amharic(?), but not good enough for ID. (F.Krone-DNK Jul 16, 2006 in DX Window 303) 15565 Voice of Ethiopian Unity via Jülich. July 30. *1900 + Noted at 1900 with sign-on with some sort of fanfare, unfortunately the signal was so distorted couldn't make much of the Broadcast. It seemed if the audio was chopped , muffled and almost complete un-intelligible. Will have to try again... (E.Kusalik-AB-CAN Jul 29, 2006 for CRW) Voice of Oromia Independence 15650 Voice of Oromia Independence July 29.06 *15oo-153o* Opening with partial EG ID, caught ... International" (for Radio Miami International??) , then HoA opening melody, then partial ID or slogan as 'adda .... Oromiyaa’ This was followed with a program of commentary talks, with selections of HoA music. At the close of the transmission, the announcer gave this slogan again, mention the frequency in kilohertz, and then sign-off with closing HoA selection. The audio of this broadcast sure varied, the music came in at fair quality, where as, the talks, very low keyed, and some what muffled at times (poor audio connection?). Otherwise, relatively good signal here. (E.Kusalik-AB-CAN Jul 29, 2006 for CRW) ............................................................... Logs - KOREA (NORTH) Shiokaze / Sea Breeze 9485, Shiokaze (Seabreeze) via Taiwan (presumed), *1300 July 16. OM begins pgm in English with schedule and address. Reading of list of missing persons begins over piano mx at 1304 and concludes at 1326. Signal at 1300 was S9 with deep fading. Repeats schedule to 1329:25. Piano mx only, continues to 1329:59* when plug pulled. Signal at end down to S7 with fading. (J.Strawman-IA-USA Jul 16, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) SHIOKAZE heard on 9485 in English for the first time at 1300 to 1330 on 16 July. I have heard it a number of times in Japanese, but never in English or Korean, on 9855 & 9485 with signal strength usually fair to good. After id, frequency schedule, and info about Shiokaze, the man read a list of abductees: Mr. or Mrs., family name, and birth year. This was done in chronological order from 1935 to 1983. At least 3 times he announced, “The following number is the birth year.” All this with slow piano music in the background. (W.Craighead-KS-USA Jul 17, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) 9485 "Shiokaze" (presume via Taiwan) *1300-1330* Jul 18. Usual long opening, then JP program, then usual long closing and off at 1330*. I don't know JP, but did not seem to be the usual list of names, but rather a long talk with mentions of "Kim-il-sung" and "America". Usual blockbuster signal. (J.Wilkins-CO-USA Jul 18, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) SHIOKAZE : tested on 13-1330 on 9485 with the following results: on 19 there was no signal on 20 there was a very faint signal of ca S2 However on the band there was a noise produced from V oT on 9465 with local like signal. (Z.Liangas-GRC Jul 20, 2006 in CDX-ML) 9485 "Shiokaze" 1313-1330* Jul 21. Noted in EG today (Friday) with the usual list of abductees in order by birth date. The previous 3 days' xmsns had been in JP. At the end of today's EG pgm, this sked was announced: "Shiokaze One" from 2030-2100 UTC in 9785, and "Shiokaze Two" from 1300-1330 UTC on 9485 kHz. Has this been confirmed as being via Taiwan? Just checked 9785 at 2045 UTC and no trace of a carrier noted here. (J.Wilkins-CO-USA Jul 21, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) The morning service from R. Shiokaze (via Taiwan) on 9785 is noted signing-on at 2100, to closing at 2130, with Japanese, as on various days from Jul 18 through 21. This is a variation from its annouced/published schedule. Good signals here in Melbourne, but jamming on-channel which could be a problem in the primary target area! (B.Padula-AUS Jul 21, 2006 in CDX-ML) Thanks Bob's tip, tuning in via a DX Tuner in Sweden. I think I am hearing the wrong program being fed. There was a crash start at 2100, but this sure sounds like Radio Australia in Indonesian. (H.Johnson-FL-USA Jul 21, 2006 in CDX-ML) Finally heard Shiokaze myself now that it`s at a waking hour, July 22 on 9485 at 1322 in Japanese. Was narrative with musical background, not a listing of the victims; ID at 1329 just before closing made clear it`s pronounced Shiókaze, not Shiokáze as I had been saying. Why didn`t anybody clue me in? I try my best to pronounce names properly; having Spanish as my first foreign language leads to such misaccentuation tendencies. Did not hear any jamming, but could have been masked by high local noise level. Must remember to listen other mornings for English version, especially Tuesday. (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 22, 2006 in DXLD-ML) 9785 on 2104+ with talks by mainly YL with very short music interval on 2108, talks by OM on 2116. All in korean. Signal was S3 with max S7 at 2108 on the 16 m horizontal with a total of 22332 on LSB mode. 2119 with 'pretty woman'? QRM by RFI on 9790 of S9+10 . making very strong QRM on Shiokaze, NO QRM on 9780. (Z.Liangas-GRC Jul 24, 2006 in CDX-ML) I was all set to hear and record the English version of Shiokaze, Tuesday, July 25 --- but no English! At 1258, the 9485 carrier was already on, and from 1300 piano music, Japanese announcement, and the rest seemed to be in Korean tho I thought I heard some Japanese words here and there. Several mentions of Shiókaze; 1304 electronic stingers amid the talk; 1327 piano music background resumed for closing and off at 1330*. Good reception here, anyway, and no jamming audible. Occasional brief data burst QRM, however. (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 25, 2006 in WOR 1323 via DXLD-ML) 9485 "Shiokaze" *1300-1330* Jul 26. In EG today, but not the usual list of names; began with "News Flash," followed by "Special News" (ancr read editorials dealing with North Korea); closing anmt mentioned PO Box 4022 (or 1022), Tokyo Central PO; off at 1330. Nine days worth of monitoring at this time on 9485 from 18-26 July shows JP on 6 of those days, EG on 2 (7/21 and 7/26), and one day (7/22) I did not check. (J.Wilkins-CO-USA Jul 21, 2006 in CDX-ML) JAPAN - Shiokaze, 9485 via Taiwan from 1258 on 7/27. O/C to 1301 when a piano melody appeared, then man in possible EE over soft piano in background. Heard mentions of "people" and "Korea,". Brief pause at 1304 and then continued - seemed to be reading off names. First appearance in several attempts. (G.Dexter-WI-USA Jul 27, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) Haven`t managed to catch them in English yet; Saturday July 29 at 1300 on 9485 it was in Japanese including a solo YL vocal at 1315-1317 as reception via Taiwan was deteriorating. BTW, beaming from Taiwan to Korea is favorable for further reception in NAm, much more so than from the other side, Russia as before (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 29, 2006 in DXLD 6-112) Nothing heard on 9485, between 1310 and 1330 UT Monday July 31. Indonesia with usual good signal on 9525 then. Guess Shiokaze has changed time and frequency again, to where? (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 31, 2006 in DXLD-ML) ............................................................... Logs - KURDISTAN Voice of Free Kurdistan 4675 Voice of Free Kurdistan??, 18:36-18:50, escuchada el 23 de Julio probablemnte en kurdo con programa de música folklórica local y locutor con comentarios, SINPO 23332. (J.Miguel Romero Romero-E Jul 23, 2006 in CDX-ML) Voice of Mesopotamia Voice of Mesopotamia was heard today at 1350 on 15720 kHz signing off at 1400 // 11530 kHz. (M.Ritola-FIN Jul 22,2006 in CDX-ML) Voice of Mesopotamia : At 1250-1310, Su Jul 23, and 0945, Tu Jul 25, it was only heard on the usual 11530 with 35333. (A.Petersen-DNK Jul 25, 2006 in DX Window 303) ............................................................... Logs - LAOS Hmong Lao Radio I listened to HMONG LAO RADIO via WHRI on 11785 from 1322 until 1400 on Saturday, 22 July, in English and Hmong. At 1322 in English a man was interviewing a woman who is working on migration and refugee issues, has lobbied for the Hmong people, and participated in the United Nations Interactive Hearing on Migration. A man seemed to translate questions and responses into Hmong. After 1338 men spoke in Hmong with Asian pop selections. The only traditional Hmong music heard was at 1358. Usual WHR/LeSea/WHRI id at 1359. Since this is via WHRI rather than KWHR, this Saturday and Sunday-only broadcast is probably aimed at large Hmong communities in North America [here in Kansas, Minnesota, the West Coast, etc.] rather than Southeast Asia. (W.Craighead-KS-USA Jul 22, 2006 for CRW) 11785, Hmong Lao Radio via WHRI, July 29, *1259-1324, on with IS, ToH WHRI ID, asked for reception reports (PO Box 12, South Bend, Indiana), into assume Hmong; news, followed by commentary about the Middle East. Fair at sign-on, by 1324 poor, with heavy QRM. Tuned in at 1254, noted two Chinese language stations mixing together. Believe VOA via Thailand (had recording of recent Bush speech), with China/CNR programming jamming them. (R.Howard-CA-USA Jul 29, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) 11785, 13:00-14:00 UTC Hmong Lao Radio via World harvest Radio in South Carolina. Nx about the Mid East situation. Good Signal, SIO 444. Saturday broadcast on 29 July, 2006. (J.Fisher-MA-USA Jul 29, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) ............................................................... Logs - LIBYA Sawt Alamel / Libya's Voice of Hope 17695V Sowt Alamel Jul 16 1253-1304 35433 Arabic, Talk, ID at 1257 and 1301, I moved to 17690 kHz to 1256. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 16, 2006 in JAP 430) Today July 29th, I logged Sawt al Amal at 1343 UTC until s/off at 1400 UTC on 17695 kHz with talks about Libya and ID "Sawt al Amal" repeated four times at 1357 UTC. SINPO was 34333; The signal from LJB on the same frequency was only audible very weak in the background. (P.Robic-AUT Jul 29, 2006 for CRW) ............................................................... Logs - MALDIVES Minivan Radio 13620 Minivan R. via DTK Jul 18 1607-1627 34433 Vernacular, Talk and local music, ID at 1618. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 18, 2006 in JAP 430) ............................................................... Logs - MYANMAR Democratic Voice of Burma 15480 Democratic V.of Burma Jul 16 *1428-1440 35433 Brurmese, 1428 sign on with opening music, ID, Talk, //17625 kHz. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 16, 2006 in JAP 430) ............................................................... Logs - SOMALIA Radio Horyaal 11830 kHz Radio Horyaal via Russia. July 17 at 1730-1745. SINPO 35333. S/on with ID and local music. Koran followed. Talk program from 1732, followed by male talk with interview at 1740. (I.Nagatani-J Jul 17, 2006 in JAP 430) ............................................................... Logs - VIETNAM Degar Voice 7250 Degar Voice Jul 18 *1300-1310 44444 Vietnamese, 1300 sign on with IS, ID, Opening announce, Talk. (Ko.Hashimoto-J Jul 18, 2006 in JAP 430) ............................................................... Logs - ZIMBABWE SW Radio Africa This may be old news. but SW Radio Africa seems to be active again on 4880, Noted on 26 July at 1835. Maybe I should not log this in public to keep jammers away. Anyway, there was a numbers lady on the channel and some other interference when using LSB. (J.Savolainen-FIN Jul 26, 2006 in DXLD-ML) ------------xxxxxxxxxx QSL Verifications xxxxxxxxxx------------ Qsl's - CUBA Radio Martí Radio Marti 530 kHz via EC-130 aircraft, verie letter in 13 mo. from Michael Paltone, Dir. Engr./Technical Operations, Office of Cuba Broadcasting. I was quite thrilled to get this as I believe they have stopped broadcasting from these facilities and now rent time on WDHP-1620. (G.Myers-FL-USA Jul 19, 2006 in IRCA-ML) ............................................................... Qsl's - ETHIOPIA Voice of Oromo Liberation The following verified via DTK-Telekom [DTK or Deutsche Telekom, not DTK-Telekom -CRW]: 9820 via Wertachtal 125 kw's Voice of Oromo Liberation It's best to send e-mail reports to the V/s: as his time is limited in replying. V/S: Walter Brodowsky E-mail: Walter.Brodowsky@t-systems.com (E.Kusalik-AB-CAN Jul 28, 20006 in DXplorer-ML) ............................................................... Qsl's - GAMBIA Voice of the Dispore-Save the Gambia Democracy Project The following verified via DTK-Telekom [DTK or Deutsche Telekom, not DTK-Telekom -CRW]: 9405 via Jülich 100 kw's Voice of the Dispore-Save the Gambia Democracy Project It's best to send e-mail reports to the V/s: as his time is limited in replying. V/S: Walter Brodowsky E-mail: Walter.Brodowsky@t-systems.com (E.Kusalik-AB-CAN Jul 28, 20006 in DXplorer-ML) ............................................................... Qsl's - KOREA (NORTH) Shiokaze / Sea Breeze And today, 17 July, I received from SHIOKAZE a full-data [except site] blue on white card verifying reception on 9855. This 1 month after sending a report to Shiokaze, 3-8-401 Koraku 2-chome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-0004, Japan. (W.Craighead-KS-USA Jul 17, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) "KOREA(DPR)", 9855, Shiokaze, f/d "Rescue-COMJAN" card with handwritten date/UTC/freq in 20 days for $1. Card lists "Shiokaze One" and "Shiokaze Two" as 9785 and 9485 kHz, respectively. (S.R.Barbour-NH-USA Jul 23, 2006 in HCDX-ML) 9855, Shiokaze (Sea Breeze) verified an e-mail report with a partial data Japanese/English QSL postcard in 15 days that included the date and time handwritten on the card with the wrong frequencies printed on the card in 15 days. (R.D´Angelo-PA-USA Jul 30, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) ------------xxxxxxxxxx Miscellaneous xxxxxxxxxx----------------- Misc - CUBA CUBAN NEWS AGENCY SAYS BUSH "WIRING CUBAN SUBVERSIVES" Cuban news agency Prensa Latina says that "the new edition of the Bush Plan against Cuba insists in allocating new sums of money to historically frustrated communication projects like Martí Radio and TV." Prensa Latina claims that "radio and TV broadcasting have historically been used to provide instructions for groups infiltrated in the island to carry out sabotage and terrorist attempts." Now, says the Cuban news agency, the report of the Commission for the Assistance to a Free Cuba, approved by President Bush, has boosted finances for the propaganda war and committed to help groups within. It says illegal groups in Cuba will now be provided with the required equipment to receive emissions designed to train them in broadcasting information against the State. This could even include regularly scheduled meetings to coordinate communication strategies against the island (Source: Prensa Latina) (A.Sennit-HOL Jul 16, 2006 in Media Network blog via DXLD 6-104) ............................................................... Misc - EL SALVADOR Video about Radio Venceremos and R. Farabundo Marti at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfJR-aH9S2M (H.A.Nigro-URG Aug 3, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) ............................................................... Misc - ISRAEL Gaza-based Islamic Jihad radio says broadcasts "jammed" by Israel Text of report in English by Palestinian Ma'an News Agency website Khan Yunis, 20 July: Sawt al-Quds (The Voice of Jerusalem), the radio station belonging to Islamic Jihad, declared on Thursday morning [20 July] that its broadcast on 102.7 [MHz] FM was jammed by the Israeli occupation and listeners found themselves hearing calls denouncing the Palestinian resistance and inciting citizens to rise up against the resistance and its leaders. This campaign comes after the Israeli forces stepped up their hostile actions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank following the Palestinian "Operation Scattering Illusion" that led to the capture of the Israeli soldier Cpl Gilad Shalit. A few days ago, Sawt al-Aqsa (The Voice of al-Aqsa), the radio station belonging to Hamas, declared that its broadcast in the southern governorates of the Gaza Strip had also been exposed to jamming by the Israeli army. An increase in aggression against the mass media and media personnel has been noticed since the start of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, "Operation Summer Rain", seemingly aimed at hiding the crimes carried out by the Israeli occupation forces in the Palestinian territories. Several Israeli attacks have taken place in the last few days. The Israeli forces broke into the headquarters of the Palestinian news agency Wafa in the city of Ramallah and destroyed its contents, journalists from the pan-Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera were attacked in Nablus and a Ma'an cameraman was injured by Israeli gunfire in Gaza. There are further reports of other foreign reporters being targeted in the Gaza Strip and other such measures carried out by the Israeli forces against journalists and media organizations in order to conceal the truth and ensure the Israeli massacres of women and children are not seen by the world. Source: Ma'an News Agency website, Bethlehem, in English 1322 gmt 20 Jul 06 (BBCM Jul 20, 2006) ............................................................... Misc - KOREA (NORTH) North Korea/USA: US-based radio service to transmit messages into N Korea Text of report in English by Kim So-yo'ng, published by South Korean newspaper The Daily NK website on 12 July Commencing in Korea, Open Radio for North Korea (Open Radio) will begin a worldwide event on 7 July for one week, relaying messages to the North. The broadcasting is a special event free of charge for South Koreans to express their thoughts to Kim Jong-Il in regards to North Korea's missiles. Open Radio revealed the event is intended to relay voices of South Korean citizens to North Korea's foremost Commissioner Kim Jong-Il and make North Korean authorities reflect upon their policies. Messages to Kim Jong-Il can be of any content, with the exclusion of any public instigations of violence or breaches to existing law. The message should be kept to one A4 page and undoubtedly include a message of protest to Kim Jong-Il or a message to another North Korean person. Messages can be sent via email, fax or posted on the Open Radio homepage free bulletin (notice board). Open Radio will be airing the messages via shortwave radio on 9785 kHz in North Korea on 16 and 17 July, between 6.00 p.m. and 6.30 p.m [local time, 0900 to 0930 gmt]. Open Radio established their exclusive North Korea radio broadcast last 6 December, with their main office in Washington DC, USA. The broadcast also supports other personal and group messages to North Korea and broadcasts their own programme through short waves for 30 minutes daily. It is a public broadcast open to anyone wanting to participate and messages can be sent via the fixed shortwave with a fee (50,000 won (53 US dollars)/5 min). - E-mail : nkradio@nkradio.com - Phone : 82-0505-470-7470 - Fax : 82-0505-471-7470 - Homepage : www.nkradio.com Source: The Daily NK website, Seoul, in English 12 Jul 06 (BBCM Jul 12, 2006) Media Network drew attention to this story, here it is in full: (I believe the schedule for this one is 1000-1030 11750 and 1700-1730 on 9760, per the WRTH. If anyone has more recent information, can they please update it. Thanks. H.Johnson) North Korean defectors' stealth protest By Choe Sang-Hun International Herald Tribune Published: July 20, 2006 SEOUL Each day, from a basement studio in a nondescript Seoul neighborhood, Kim Seong Min's seven-person staff records a 30-minute radio program. Within hours, beamed from a transmitter in Mongolia, Kim's radio signals penetrate North Korea's tightly sealed borders with news of the outside world. Once a week, Park Sang Hak and his colleagues travel to the border with North Korea and release bottle- shaped balloons. After soaring to an altitude of 2,500 meters, or 8,000 feet, above North Korea, the balloons release their payload: thousands of "freedom doves" - leaflets that describe leader Kim Jong Il as a greedy, womanizing despot with a protruding belly.   The North Korean authorities bristle at the intrusion, condemning Kim's operation as psychological warfare sponsored by the United States. But Kim and Park say they are motivated solely by a desire to deliver messages of hope and freedom to starving people trapped in a garrison state.   "My goal is to help North Koreans wake up and realize that they are living in a country built with lies," said Kim, head of Free North Korea Radio, or FNK. Kim and Park are defectors from the North, now settled in the South. They say they represent thousands of North Koreans who have escaped and begun to speak out against the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il. Seoul fears that their blunt criticism of the Pyongyang regime might sabotage its efforts to coax the North to relax its grip. Experts say Kim Jong Il's recent missile tests resulted in part from his insecurity over what he perceived as U.S. attempts to topple his regime. The attempts include flooding the country with small radios, Korean- language propaganda broadcasts, and "impure publications and video materials." Pyongyang has demanded that South Korea disband FNK, calling it a "lackey for U.S. imperialists." But speaking in a U.S. congressional hearing in April, Jay Lefkowitz, a special U.S. envoy on human rights in North Korea, vowed to support operations like FNK as "a possible precursor to a more robust broadcast platform that creates an open window to North Korea." Kim and Park came up with the idea for FNK in 2004. At the time, South Korea was switching off radio broadcasts and tearing down billboards and loudspeakers along the demilitarized zone, implementing a cease-fire in a decades- old propaganda war. Until then, the two Koreas had bombarded each other with leaflets and radio signals. Day and night, shrill voices drifted across the DMZ, condemning a "U.S. colony" in the South and a "medieval fiefdom" in the North. Gigantic hillside posters in the North beckoned: "Come to the Socialist Paradise!" The South lit neon billboards flashing its per-capita income in dollars. Many defectors said they were encouraged by the South Korean propaganda.   Now those billboards are being replaced with benign exhortations of "peace" and "reconciliation" under an agreement forged at inter-Korean summit talks in 2000, a deal struck when North Korea, gripped by economic failure, felt more insecure than ever.   "We were dismayed. They were leaving the North Koreans in a darker world," said Kim, who came to the South in 1999. "I thought, if the South Korean government would not do it, we defectors should do it ourselves." It stirred controversy. None of Kim's staff had any radio experience. Seoul refused to give it a license. Students marched on Kim's studio, demanding an end to "anti-unification" broadcasts. Kim received anonymous phone calls threatening his life. Once he received a doll with a knife stuck in the chest. When Park and his friends first tried to send radio sets and leaflets by balloon, the police stopped them. After that, the defectors acted clandestinely, until on one occasion the wind shifted direction and a balloon dropped 3,000 leaflets in the middle of Seoul. Local media scrambled to the scene. "Our first balloons were those used by small children. Each carried four or five leaflets. We didn't know where and how far they went, but they carried our hearts with them," Park said. Park's balloons now carry up to 10,000 "freedom doves." "Whenever the wind is right, I head out with my doves," he said. "If outside radio opens the ears of the North Koreans, our leaflets will open their eyes," Park said. "When their eyes and ears are open, they will open their mouth, speak out and revolt." At FNK, three South Korean volunteers help four defectors: a former painter, physics teacher, female army captain and Kim, a former military propaganda writer from the North. Still without a government license, the station runs only a Web site in South Korea. But last December, with financial assistance coming indirectly from the U.S. Congress, Kim's Mongolian radio station began its first shortwave broadcasting. Its 30-minute program is broadcast twice a day on two different channels to increase the chances of penetrating North Korea's signal-jamming. In addition to news and commentary, FNK carries interviews with defectors and their letters to families in the North. On its talk shows, defectors ask why North Koreans celebrate Kim Jong Il's birthday as a national holiday. They point out that in South Korea, children carry cellphones worth as much as a house in the North. "Call me a liar if you like," said a female defector in a recent broadcast, revealing that South Korean women diet while North Koreans die of famine. Although the Washington-based Radio Free Asia and Voice of America also send signals into North Korea, Kim said his station was special. "We speak in North Korean dialects. We know what the North Koreans most need to hear," he said. "We speak directly to them." Park says his team has dropped more than 1.5 million leaflets over the North. "Have you ever wondered why the General Kim Jong Il has a big jowl and pot belly while promising to share the sufferings of the people?" said a recent leaflet. "Have you thought about this: North Korea is the only country in the world where people can't leave their villages without travel permit?" The four-page leaflet also revealed the names of what it called Kim Jong Il's "many women." It remains unclear how many North Koreans tune into Kim's radio or read Park's leaflets. Every home in North Korea is fitted with a speaker that receives only government broadcasts. But state control has started showing cracks recently as North Korea's economy crumbles. People who sneak into China to seek food, defectors say, return with firsthand accounts of a thriving market economy on South Korean television there, which shows Seoul not crawling with beggars - as North Korean radio routinely claims - but packed with nice cars and well-dressed professionals. (International Herald Tribune via Media Network via H.Johnson-FL-USA Jul 21, 2006 in CDX-ML) Koreas: Free North Korea Radio broadcasting from transmitter in Mongolia Seoul-based Free North Korea Radio (FNK Radio) has been broadcasting into North Korea a 30-minute programme twice a day beginning December 2005, after having received indirect funding from the US Congress, according to an article published by the Paris-based International Herald Tribune (IHT) on 20 July. The seven-member staff produce a 30-minute programme, which carry discussion programmes, music and interviews with defectors and letters to their families, according to the IHT article, and are broadcast on two different shortwave frequencies to avoid jamming. One of the frequencies according to the FNK Radio website is 5880kHz, a second frequency and times of broadcasts were not given. Prior to the alleged US funding, Free North Korea Radio was an internet-only radio station, founded and run by five North Korean defectors and funded by some 4,000 defectors' private donations and the Association of the North Korean Defectors. The article said: "Within hours, beamed from a transmitter in Mongolia, Kim's radio signals penetrate North Korea's tightly sealed borders with news of the outside world." Source: International Herald Tribune, Paris, in English 20 July 06 (BBCM Jul 20, 2006) One Response to "International Herald Tribune says Free North Korea Radio is broadcasting from Mongolia" --- Since 1980s the Mongolian SW transmitters have had a notoriously poor modulation. It was difficult to pick their signal up even without jamming. How can they make it through a North Korean "radio defence"?! I think this is a bogus story. I won`t be surprised if one day we learn that Free North Korea Radio is coming from Irkutsk or one of those sites (Sergei [probably Sosedkin, IL], Jul 27th, 2006 in Media Network blog via DXLD 6-112) Maybe not all Mongolian SW transmitters are bad; R. Free Asia has used them (G.Hauser-OK-USA Jul 29, 2006 in DXLD 6-112) ............................................................... Misc - MIDDLE EAST THE MORE YOU HEAR RADIO SAWA, THE LESS YOU LIKE U.S. POLICY? Study, published in Global Media and Communication http://gmc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/2/2/183 involving 394 Arab students, concludes that there is no relationship between the frequency of listening to Radio Sawa and views towards US policy. The paper also finds that the subjects' views towards U.S. policy worsened during the period they listened to Radio Sawa or watched Alhurra. U.S. News & World Report, 17 July 2006: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/060717/17war.htm See Kim's comments about the study. Posted: 18 Jul 2006 (kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD 6-105) Kim's comments about the el-Nawawy study Because of the study's small number of subjects (394) and the use of a convenience sample, I was expecting to see the paper conclude with the usual "these preliminary findings call for further research using larger and more representative samples." Instead, I found three pages of broad conclusions, including "The US administration may need to face this reality and realize that launching channels such as Sawa and Alhurra must go hand-in-hand with changing and/or modifying its policies on the ground." The most controversial finding, that the Arab students' attitudes towards U.S. foreign policy had worsened since they started listening to Radio Sawa and watching Alhurra, cannot convincingly be made based on one correlational analysis involving this small, non-representative group of subjects. Nevertheless, it precipitated the U.S. News headline ("The more you hear, the less you like"). Other media outlets can be expected to provide similar coverage. This study is illustrative of the perception by most scholars and decision makers in the United States that exposure to international broadcasts can and should change attitudes. But people generally tune to foreign broadcasts in to get news that is more comprehensive and more credible than the news they get domestically. Through their exposure to international broadcasts, audiences are, for better or worse, more completely and accurately informed. During a period including the Iraq War and its complicated aftermath, as well as continued strife in and around Israel, it is to be expected that Arab views towards U.S. policy might deteriorate. A reasonable goal for U.S. international broadcasting is to ensure that any such deterioration of attitudes is not exacerbated by misinformation and disinformation, from other sources, about U.S. policies and actions. In the el-Nawawy paper, I am badly misquoted by a secondary source as saying: "Arab people will always look at Alhurra as a propaganda station that publicized the ideas of the US government." I don't remember saying that, and I certainly never thought that. I have always stressed that U.S. international broadcasting must retain its autonomy. About Alhurra, it may never match Aljazeera or Alarabiya in audience size, but it can serve a significant role in reaching Arabs who would like to receive news from a U.S. source and to know more about American life and institutions. This is being accomplished to some extent, given Alhurra's fairly respectable daily audience figures, ranging from two percent to fifteen percent of households in various Arab countries (27 percent in Iraq, where it has terrestrial transmitters). Kim (kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD 6-105) ............................................................... Misc - NEPAL Nepal: FM radios operated by Maoists close, report Text of report by Nepalese pro-communist weekly newspaper Sanghu on 17 July Kathmandu: FM radios (95.1 MHz) being operated by the Maoist in different parts of the country to inform the people about their policy and programmes, have closed down one after another. During the war time, the Maoists had operated FM radio stations in the eastern special central command and the special regions. After the popular movement, the rebels had started test transmissions in the Kathmandu valley. Initially, the broadcast lasted from 3 AM to 8 PM. But the army jammed its frequency by using special devices brought from China. A Maoist radio representative had met the home minister and inquired about the frequency jamming. "Everything will be OK once the Maoists join the interim government," the home minister told him. The home minister had urged the Maoists to stop their broadcast till that time. The government has decided to cancel the FM radio permission granted to the army by the previous government. At such as situation, granting permission to the Maoists would anger the army, the home minister said. Out of four FM stations installed in other parts of the country, only two are in operation, said a source close to the Maoists. According to the source, Maoist radio transmission (called Radio People's Republic) from their special Seti and Mahakali region has been disrupted. Mechanical snag is blamed for the interruption. Maoists have said that there were delays to maintain the radio stations as the party's attention has now been drawn to the politics at the central level. The FM radio stations being operated in the eastern command and Bheri-Karnali region [west] region are in operation. Source: Sanghu, Kathmandu, in Nepali 17 Jul 06 (BBCM Jul 17, 2006) ............................................................... Misc - RUSSIA Russia: Over 60 regional radio stations stop relaying VOA, Radio Liberty - paper Excerpt from report by Dmitriy Vinogradov and Vasiliy Sergeyev, published by Russian Gazeta.ru website on 10 July Around 60 regional radio stations have stopped broadcasting America's Radio Liberty [RL] and Voice of America [VOA]. There is talk of irregularities in obtaining licences, however the experts are not ruling out underlying political reasons. America's vigilant Washington Post newspaper published an article Friday [7 July] reporting the ban on the broadcasting by over 60 radio broadcasting organizations in Russia, of news provided by two radio stations - VOA and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which are sponsored by the US administration. Gazeta.ru was told by RL's Moscow office that "there have been some changes to the law on the media and now all these local radio stations have to obtain new broadcasting licences". According to the radio station's spokesman, such "rolling outages" have been taking place for the past two months. However, the radio station is optimistic: "Everything may sort itself out." What is more, broadcasting is continuing in several regions where people attended to the new licences in advance. Rosokhrankultura [the Federal Service for Monitoring the Observance of Legislation in the Sphere of Mass Communication and Protection of the Cultural Heritage], which monitors media licensing, is flatly refusing to comment. "I have not studied this matter yet and I have no comment," Yevgeniy Strelchik, adviser for the head of Rosokhrankultura, said. [Passage omitted] In all probability, this is a question of purely technical problems with licences, analyst Mikhail Melnikov of the Centre for Extreme Journalism, says. "I very much doubt that this is a purely political action - it is the wrong time and there is no point. So, to comment that this is a political act is completely absurd. Our bureaucracy is capable of such blunders through stupidity without any political will. Some deadline elapses, some official suddenly remembers - this has happened on several occasions. They start to rush, then a day or two passes and they tear their hair, saying these are actually good guys." "I think this is a complex problem," Ekho Moskvy Radio Chief Editor Aleksey Venediktov reckons. "We at Ekho Moskvy are familiar with our regional partners often showing a careless regard for licenced products. I fully concede that licensing problems are formally at the bottom of these sagas." However, Venediktov does not deny the "political component" either: "All the recent actions by the authorities, particularly at local level, are linked to their horror of new elections and fear of the 'orange plague'." Everything is being done to limit as far as possible the scope for activity by the opposition, including the local opposition. And the local authorities are using any formal pretext, if the regional broadcasters provide it, to close down these uncontrolled platforms. Lastly, there is the third aspect - regional broadcasters themselves, primarily the holders of the licences, the local barons and oligarchs, governors and mayors, are trying to earn an affectionate nod from the Kremlin by stopping broadcasting of US stations in their region. This is a complex saga but it would undoubtedly not have happened were it not for the atmosphere of 'grab them and hold them'." Venediktov believes that the US radio stations themselves "by law are unable" to check that their regional partners draw up the licences correctly "because they are just the suppliers of the product... A vegetable depot cannot keep an eye on a grocery store's licences and leasing rights". Source: Gazeta.ru website, Moscow, in Russian 10 Jul 06 (BBCM Jul 10, 2006) ............................................................... Misc - SPAIN - HISTORY La Voz de Canarias Libre info Those of you who received QSL from them may be interested in this article in Spanish by Antonio Cubillo, Secretario General del MPAIAC , Presidente del CNC (3 Dec 2005 in http://www.radioaventura.com/index.php?news=550) 30 ANIVERSARIO DE LA VOZ DE CANARIAS LIBRE. (F.Krone-DNK Jul 22, 2006 in DXplorer-ML) ------------xxxxxxxxxx Sources xxxxxxxxxx---------------------- Contributors: Anker Petersen, Edward Kusalik, Oliver Benjamin Hemmerle, Patrick Robic, Wendel Craighead, Zacharias Liangas In order to unsubscribe please login to www.clandestineradio.com or to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/crwatch/ and change your user settings.