Looks like Omar Souleyman won’t be making it to this weekend’s Metropolis Festival.
According to a statement posted by the festival on its Facebook page, the Syrian musician was “denied a visa to come and perform in Ireland”. A Visa to enter the UK – where he was also scheduled to play – was similarly denied.
Souleyman played Electric Picnic 2013, and his exhilarating performance back then left a lot of people looking forward to his return to these shores.
“We are extremely disappointed,” said Metropolis organisers, “especially in the current climate, that a Syrian citizen who has performed here and in the UK many times before should be refused a visa to come and do his job. He is a proud representative of his nation and we’re extremely disappointed he will not be joining us this weekend.”
Had he made it to Metropolis – a brand new festival making its debut this year – Souleyman would have used the opportunity to “raise awareness and funds for the growing refugee crises in Syria.”
In his absence, Metropolis have pledged to fulfil that request. Amnesty International will be “at the festival all weekend and will be collecting donations for their work on the Refugee Crisis. They are campaigning to ensure that the many millions of Syrians who have been displaced and forced to flee their homes as a result of the conflict there are provided with proper humanitarian support and with access to safe and legal routes to seek asylum.”
If you’re heading along, we encourage you to give them your support.
Metropolis kicks off tomorrow (7 November) in the RDS. Full details can be found here. Weekend passes are sold out, but there are still some day tickets available.