Somalia: New gaming rage keeps teens off the street
MOGADISHU, Somalia — Inside a hot, cramped room in the Somali capital, 10 sweating children sat on wooden desks, not unlike those found in schools. These boys, though, were not in class. They were staring at a small TV and tightly gripping video-game controllers.
Video games are the new rage in Somalia, a first-world entertainment option for teenage boys that wasn't permitted when ultraconservative al-Shabab militants controlled the capital. The insurgents -- who were pushed out of Mogadishu last year by African Union and Somali troops -- banned recreational pleasures like movies and Nintendo.
With the militants gone, Somali teens and boys are bingeing on entertainment systems like Sony's PlayStation, a development with both positive and negative aspects.
Some parents say the video games are helping to keep teens off the street, which in turn lowers the chances they might be recruited by al-Shabab. But many teens admit to skipping class to practice their gaming skills.
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/World/20120504/somalia-video-game-popularity-pros-and-cons-120504/
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