Thursday 10 February 2011

Abdul Qasim Alshabi (24/2/09 -9/10/34) -To the Tyrants of the World

Unjust tyrant, lover of the darkness, enemy of life
You have mocked the wounds of the weak people
Your palm is stained with their blood
You distorted the charm of existence
And planted the seeds of sorrow in the fields
Wait, don't let the spring, the clearness of the sky
and the morning light fool you
For on the horizon lies the horror of darkness,
rumble of thunder and blowing of winds
Beware underneath the ash there is fire
And he who sows thorns reaps wounds
Look there, for I have harvested the heads of mankind
and the flowers of hope
And I watered with blood the heart of the earth
I drenched it with tears until it was drunk
The river of blood will sweep you
And the burning storm will devour you

This is an English Translation of the Arabic poem Ela Toghat Al Alaam which was written by the Tunisian poet Abdul Qasim Alshabi.
A powerful and wonderful poem, that I feel, still resonates, down the years. It has recently been an inspiration to the protestors of Tunisia and Egypt, who have subsequently been using it in their recent struggle for liberation as a rallying a call and have used and incorporated it in their slogans and chants, and the struggle continues.



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