MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — In a theater where a suicide bomber detonated years ago, Hassan Barre stepped forward to offer a different hallmark of Somalia: poetry.
In one of the world's most volatile nations, Somalis must be aware of their responsibility to their country and each other, he said in a recital emphasizing good citizenship.
The 70-year-old Barre cut a somber figure at the podium. His message echoed in the largely empty hall of the National Theater in Mogadishu, the capital, where aging poets in austere suits gather to share verses and recall the good old days.
The men, some with hennaed beards and glaucoma eyes, represent a fading measure of hope for a country that has been slowly stripped of its cultural wealth during decades of conflict.
There may be no higher art in Somalia than oral poetry, which is recited in the most remote outposts and even by militants in the bush. Somalis, after all, are often described as "a nation of poets." Their work often venerates pastoral well-being and the traditional roles of men and women in the predominantly Islamic society.
Some poets like Hadraawi — the “Shakespeare of Somalia” who died in 2022 — have achieved universal recognition. “Hadraawi’s oeuvre includes a broad repertoire, from love songs to laments of war,” Harvard University's Archive of World Music noted after his death.
Poets flourished during the reign of Siad Barre, who ruled Somalia with an iron hand but was known to respect the intellectual work of artists. His removal in 1991 by clan-based militias provoked a civil war as warlords fought for authority — chaos that eventually led to the deadly rise of the al-Qaida-affiliated al-Shabab.
Somalia is now known far more for bombings than poetry. The violence has not spared its cultural institutions, now mostly in limbo as the fragile federal government spends the bulk of its budget on national security.
The National Theater, like the National Museum next door, is largely inactive. To reach the venue in a heavily guarded area near the presidential palace, visitors traveling in a vehicle must notify the intelligence agency in advance, part of security precautions that demand not just the car’s license plate number but even its make and color.
On the morning Hassan Barre sang his poem, a group of young Somalis were practicing a folk dance that emphasized traditional values, like dutifully cultivating the land. A group of poets, including one woman, sat nearby, talking quietly.
Some told The Associated Press they are trying to keep Somalia’s poetic tradition alive despite security concerns and financial challenges that limit programming.
Traditional poets still perform at community gatherings like weddings, and poems are recited daily on local radio stations.
But during Siad Barre’s reign “we were treated like kings,” with some receiving free housing, said the poet Barre, who is not related to the former president. “The present administration, they are not giving much treatment to the poets and singers. We expect them to treat us the way we used to be treated.”
Daud Aweis, Somalia's culture minister, said poets still play “a vital role in Somali society, serving as a foundational pillar for cultural vitality, individual well-being and peaceful coexistence." While his ministry provides limited funding for culture and the arts at the National Theater, "the long-term goal is to expand support,” he told the AP.
Inaugurated in 1967, less than a decade after independence, the National Theater shut down in 1991 following Barre's ouster. It reopened in 2012 after African Union peacekeepers pushed al-Shabab fighters out of Mogadishu in a counter-terrorism campaign.
Months later, however, a suicide bomber blew herself up at the theater during a speech by the prime minister, killing the head of Somalia’s Olympic committee and at least seven others. The prime minister survived.
Still, the poets who meet at the National Theater are not giving up. Gathering there fosters a sense of community in a sandbagged city ringed by checkpoints.
Hirsi Dhuuh Mohamed, who chairs the Somali Council of Poets, said the group has 400 members, including many in the diaspora. He said things had improved from “the worst” in the late 1990s, when Mogadishu was divided into zones as warlords fought for dominance.
"One thing that unites all Somali poets, whether in Eritrea, whether in Somalia, everywhere, we stand for peace,” he said, adding that they never engage directly in politics. Instead, he said, the overarching message of their work is security, good governance and community integration.
Another poet, Maki Haji Banaadir, a curmudgeon with gold-rimmed glasses, is among those trying to keep the National Theater operational as its deputy director.
In 2003, he and six other poets traveled across Somalia to preach reconciliation. That kind of journey is impossible now. The federal government has little hold on territory outside of Mogadishu, and at least two semi-autonomous regions are seeking secession.
Maki, as he is commonly known, is a popular cultural figure in Somalia. A decade ago, he composed a song about the apparent uselessness of the Somali shilling, which is no longer accepted in local markets amid the dollarization of Somalia’s economy.
Asked if he and his peers were grooming the next generation of Somali poets, he said he hoped so: “We are working day and night."
Somali poets perform during a cultural event, in Mogadishu, Somalia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)
Somali poets perform during a cultural event, in Mogadishu, Somalia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)
A Somali poet performs during a cultural event in Mogadishu, Somalia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)
HONG KONG (AP) — About a third of Hong Kong 's registered voters elected a new 90-member legislature Sunday, a turnout that avoided an embarrassment for the government but fell short of a ringing endorsement of an electoral system revamp that eliminated the once feisty opposition in the Chinese territory.
The turnout rate reached 31.9%, surpassing the 30.2% in the 2021 election, the first held under the new system. It was much lower than before the electoral changes, when turnout topped 50%.
Many of the city’s 4.1 million eligible voters, especially democracy supporters, have turned away from politics since a crackdown that has stifled dissent. Candidates must now go through a vetting process that ensures they are patriots who are loyal to the Chinese government. The government says the changes were needed to bring stability after massive anti-government protests in 2019.
The government launched a major campaign to drive up turnout, adding polling stations, extending voting hours and holding candidate forums. But public anger over government accountability in an apartment fire that killed at least 159 people late last month threatened to keep some potential voters at home.
In the end, enough came out to nudge up the turnout rate from 2021, the lowest since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Ahead of the vote, Chinese authorities called foreign media to a rare meeting to warn them that they need to comply with the city's national security laws.
Election campaigning was suspended after the fire and remained subdued in the final days out of respect for the victims.
Government efforts to drive up turnout, seen as a referendum on the new electoral system, had been in full swing before the blaze. Promotional banners and posters were hung throughout the city and subsidies offered to centers for older people and people with disabilities to help them vote.
Authorities arrested people who allegedly posted content that incited others not to vote or cast invalid votes.
Hong Kong's deadliest fire in decades has raised questions over government oversight and suspected bid-rigging in building maintenance projects. The 1980s-era apartment complex was undergoing renovations.
Some candidates pledged to combat bid-rigging.
City leader John Lee said in a statement on Monday that holding a smooth election during a difficult period for Hong Kong “carries profound significance," saying he expected the lawmakers would work with the government to drive systemic reforms following the fire.
Even before the 2021 electoral changes, only half of what had been a 70-member legislature was chosen by the general electorate.
Now, that has been reduced to 20 out of 90 seats and 40 others are chosen by a largely pro-Beijing election committee. The remaining 30 represent various groups — mainly major industries such as finance, health care and real estate — and are elected by their members.
The “patriots” requirement for all candidates has pushed out the opposition parties, which advocated for making the system more democratic.
“I’m performing my civic duty as a citizen to vote … but I’m not too certain which candidate is hardworking and which is not,” retiree Kwan Lam said outside a polling station. “I chose the one who cares for the elderly.”
Olympic fencing champion Vivian Kong on Monday won in the tourism sector, despite lacking industry experience.
The candidate pool seems to reflect Beijing's desire to have more lawmakers who are more in tune with its agenda, some observers said, in what they see as signs of Beijing’s tightening control even over its loyalists.
Lee has said that personnel changes are normal during an election. He criticized attempts to “distort” these changes to smear the new election system.
Ho-fung Hung, professor of political economy at Johns Hopkins University, said voter turnout was far lower than the 2016 election despite the vast resources the government had mobilized to boost turnout. The actual number of people who voted was also down from 2016 due to a shrinking electorate in recent years, he said.
The fire also contributed to the low turnout, Hung said.
“But it may work toward the government’s advantage, as they can blame the tragedy for the poor performance, or even say that the not-so-drastic drop in voting number despite the fire is an achievement,” he said.
John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong, said the election shows that the city remains polarized with pro-establishment and opposition camps. The turnout rate shows that about 60% of voters who traditionally supported the pro-democracy camp did not turn out, he said.
“The fire ... played a role because it exposed various governance problems that no resident could be happy about. This could have influenced those in either camp also to stay away," he said.
But Electoral Affairs Commission chairperson David Lok found it encouraging that 1.3 million people voted, saying the current atmosphere made holding the election difficult as many were affected by the blaze.
Beijing's office on Hong Kong affairs hailed the increase in turnout rate in a WeChat statement, saying it reflected Hong Kong society's support for the poll.
Beijing’s national security arm in Hong Kong summoned representatives of several foreign news outlets, including The Associated Press, on Saturday.
Some foreign media had spread false information and smeared the government's disaster relief efforts after the fire, as well as attacked and interfered with the legislative elections, the Office for Safeguarding National Security said in a statement.
“No media outlet may use ‘freedom of the press’ as a pretext to interfere in China’s internal affairs or Hong Kong affairs,” the statement said.
Authorities have warned the general public against using the fire to try to undermine the government and have arrested at least one person on suspicion of inciting hatred against government officials.
Moritsugu reported from Beijing. Associated Press writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
Gary Chan, candidates of the Legislative Council Election, center, campaigns on the street during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Gary Chan, candidates of the Legislative Council Election, center, campaigns on the street during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
People walk past a polling station near the site of the fire at Wang Fuk Court in the Tai Po district during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Hong Kong's Chief Executive, John Lee casts his ballot at a polling station during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
People read the candidates information at a polling station near the site of the fire at Wang Fuk Court in the Tai Po district during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee, poses for photos at a polling station during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee speaks to the media at a polling station during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee casts his ballot at a polling station during the Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
People look at a candidate brochure of the Hong Kong Legislative Council General Election at a forum in Hong Kong on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Pedestrians walk past the banner promoting the Hong Kong Legislative Council General Election in Hong Kong on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
