It’s difficult to control the heart
Whatever people say about me
I love you Libya
I’d sacrifice all I have to see a smile from you
I swear this is not just talk
A tear from your eye
Creates a storm in my heart
I can’t stand even a negative question directed at you
You are in my blood and my veins
Your sorrow is my sorrow
When i write to you
The pen moves by itself
There is nowhere like you in the world
My country, best place in the world
I have no other place in the world
In the heat of the summer
I lie back and look up at the sky
And in the cold in the winter
Your eyes bring the warmth to me
Who are these people
Who pretend to love you
They only want favors
They dance for their master
Love of my life
I want nothing from you
I want to give you all I have
As long as live
What else do you want me to do?
this is my war
Libya,
There is nowhere like you in the world
My country, best place in the world
I have no other place in the world
Translation of Libyan rapper Ibn Thabit’s Call to the Libyan Youth
They said Libya is not like Egypt and Tunisia
True, the martyrs that have died before are more than Egypt and Tunisia.
The unemployment rate is higher than Egypt and Tunisia
The poor are more than Egypt and Tunisia
They are right
Libya is not like Egypt and Tunisia.
***
they said we’re trying to stir up trouble,
enough of this idle talk
if you don’t want to free your country,
just leave it, go elsewhere.
don’t speak about the grandchildren of the mujahideen
don’t speak about Gaddafi staying longer
then Zein el Abdeen
our aim is liberation
minds and hearts
and our message will reach those
who thumb their prayer-beads in the mosques
and those who sit smoking in cafes
and the downtrodden will rise up
and show their anger
those eking out a living
counting the costs
these are people who want freedom
the people who want justice
and there are a lot of them
and the reason they are so many:
the ignorant colonel
the whole nation wants change
and we have to be ready to fight for it
as long as the tamil tigers have fought
they said Libya is not like Egypt and Tunisia…
one, two, three
not afraid for his life
from four to six
enough of this fitna
at the seventh hour
the goverment will understand
eight, nine
repeat this sound, my voice travels to you
everybody wants to know what this is
close your eyes
listen to the martyrs of Bu Sleem
forty years – enough.
you can’t say this phrase inside our country.
this is the freedom of the Jamahiriya
the democracy of many people sitting on many chairs
the nonsense you spout, the words you twist
rotting the students minds
the money you steal away
this is you giving power to the people
by tarnishing the country’s image
the libyan people have honor,
the libyan people have morals,
the libyan people are true
the libyan people pray and bless the name of the prophet
and one fifth of the libyan people have memorized the quran
what gives you the idea that the libyan people would willingly follow the devil?
our grandparents with rifles and on horses
fought against oppression and injustice
and now we with heart and soul
must come out and fight every kind of ugliness
the libyan people want to live
the libyan people have ambition
libyan people know that after Muammer will come his offspring
and they will repeat the same disasters
these are the same dogs who revolt us
and the one who wants to see the end of this in his lifetime
must be ready to sacrifice his life
sacrifice his blood to be rid of his burden
for the martyrs at bu sleem -
what was their crime?
those who died “for no reason”
no, they were martyrs
shabab, this is our country
this is our time
let them see our rage
under this pressure
the heat reaching boiling point
how long are we going to stay
waiting for change
waiting for the donkeys
to feel pity for us and throw us a few scraps
the thing they fear most is seeing us standing shoulder to shoulder
they want to crumble us into pieces
into easterners and westerners
let us both easterners and westerners topple him
with one voice, in one go
the evil will leave us
and we will have the freedom to speak
we will see how much conscience we have
he has tortured millions
stolen billions
our country’s gdp is less than the price of some cars
his children and his friends have villas like palaces
and those of us who wants simple housing
has to wait in line
you don’t have to do anything
to be taken in by the security forces
the one who does the crime doesn’t have to be the one who pays
this is the modern age,
injustice is closer to them than their hand
and what is needed is for you to do what is needed
i have a message for you
this is the chance you dreamed about
so you can live standing up on your feet
not on your knees
***
A special call to the shabab of Tripoli
go out on 17 February
the army will all be in the east
and god give us victory…
Libyan rapper Ibn Thabit tackles the question: are Libyans ready to stand up and demand change like their neighbors?
I’m confused over your question, friend
we expected demonstrations,
and saw nothing but a few people jumping up and down
what do you say Ibn Thabit
about the people’s heart?
do the people still have hope, ambition?
will they resist oppression as our forefathers did?
will they sacrifice as those to the west of our border sacrificed?
do we still have pride, courage in our heart?
or does our hypocrisy
serve to fill our pockets?
do you want my answer or do you want the people’s answer?
no one but God knows how long I’ll live
do you want the opposite opinion?
first they’ll say: Thank your god that you’re alive!
yes I thank God – if not for the oil the country would be barren,
and maybe that’s for the best
so they can turn it upside down!
like they did in Tunisia
This is our salute to you!
at least we have bread, bread is cheap
but you can’t measure the price of blood
what’s your excuse? Are you waiting for our lord jesus?
the country next door has chased off its leader
he said I’ve understood them, after I insulted them
muammar: you have never served your people
muammar: you’d better give up
repent, you can’t escape
our revenge will catch up to you
like a train coming at a wall
we will drown you
bring it, boil the oil
so you can learn how they screamed at Abu Sleem
until they see you in hell, they will not rest
I swear by god who created you and created us
Muammar your end is near
90% of us are enraged
and one day, the other 10% will say
“we should have run away”
your money won’t help you
when we cut off your heads
when your armies
meet our armies
when the revolution starts
you won’t grow wings
I mean a people’s revolution
I try to explain, he doesn’t understand
he’s not educated enough to understand
I don’t know if he’s any good at anything, ask his nurse
she’ll tell you he’s good at distortion
this is the way they are, the gangs that’ll do anything for a penny
the livelihoods you’ve stolen,
the innocents you’ve murdered
the students you’ve ignored
will come back to you
you have nowhere to escape
we know your faces
and no one else will accept you
Saad-Sheen you dogs
we know you don’t know what torture is now
but you will soon
go stash your money outside
so your funds can be frozen forever
you’ve cut yourself off from the people
filth, you don’t serve the people
you don’t know how to do anything but steal our wealth
and everything you’ve grabbed
will turn to fire
this is as clear as the honor of Omar al Mukhtar
who died for this country
see what’s happening to the country
how many decades have passed us
how many billions have been squandered
no one knows me but god and god is the judge
but when we topple the leadership
you can sit in the corner
