Video footage and photos of each artist and speaker from tonight's concert are available via www.mtvexit.org/assets.
70,000 FANS JOIN INTERNATIONAL
AND LOCAL ARTISTS IN HISTORICAL ACT OF SOLIDARITY TO FIGHT HUMAN TRAFFICKING AT
MTV EXIT LIVE IN MYANMAR CONCERT
CONCERT
SPECIAL TO AIR ON 8 MARCH 2013 IN MORE THAN A HALF-BILLION HOMES AS A SPECIAL
EDITION OF “MTV WORLD STAGE”
16 DECEMBER 2012, YANGON: MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and
Trafficking) American singer-songwriter Jason Mraz took center stage performing
to 70,000 fervent fans at the MTV EXIT Live in Myanmar concert today at Yangon
People’s Square, where the magnificent 2600 year-old, golden Shwedagon Pagoda
brilliantly shined in the background.
“We
are thrilled to be in Yangon to bring together amazing international and local
artists to continue the campaign against human trafficking with the people of
Myanmar,” said Simon Goff, MTV EXIT CEO. “Music is such a powerful force to
fuel change, and tonight, more than 50,000 people stood up in solidarity to
make a statement on this global fight to end modern-day slavery!”
Mraz
makes history as the first international artist ever to perform at a massive
open-air, public concert in Myanmar. The
crowd erupted in excitement as Myanmar’s favorite female singer Phyu Phyu Kyaw
Thein joined Mraz on stage to perform the worldwide hit song Lucky.
R Zarni, one of Myanmar’s most popular artists ignited fans with
the live debut of Traps of Life, a
powerful song and music video about a survivor of human trafficking struggling
to reintegrate into their community.
Thailand’s top rock band, Slot Machine, also got the crowd roaring with
their guitar-heavy hits Paan (Yesterday)
and Chan Chao (Goodbye).
In
addition to Asia’s top artists, distinguished speakers also took to the stage
to encourage people in Myanmar and throughout the world to join the movement
against trafficking. Senior representatives from the Myanmar Central Body for
Suppression of Trafficking in Persons, Ministry of Home Affairs encouraged the
young audience to prevent trafficking in their home community.
Derek
Mitchell, United States Ambassador to Burma and Luis CdeBaca, United States
Ambassador-at-Large, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons expressed
the U.S. government’s commitment in their strategic approach to combat human
trafficking not only in Myanmar but also across Asia and throughout the world.
"The
United States Government has a proud history of combatting trafficking in
persons around the world," said USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah.
"For six years, our Agency has been a dedicated supporter of the MTV EXIT
campaign, helping to raise awareness about human trafficking around the world.
As we've seen, knowledge can lead to freedom, giving us all the power to end
modern slavery."
Bronte
Moules, Australian Ambassador to Myanmar echoed the theme of the evening with
her remarks on the Australian government’s continued efforts, through dynamic
awareness-raising and preventative programs being implemented throughout Asia
to put an end to modern-day slavery.
Ambassador
Bronte Moules, Australian Embassy Myanmar said, “The work of MTV EXIT reminds
us that ending human trafficking is everyone’s responsibility. Individuals, families, businesses, NGOs and
governments all have a role to play in stopping this trade in human life and
ensuring justice for its victims. Australia is committed to working with
Myanmar and its partners in the region, on this issue of shared international
concern.”
Andrew
Forrest, Founder Walk Free took to the stage to address the crowd along with popular
local artist and Walk Free Celebrity Ambassador to Myanmar Phyo Gyi. Forrest and Phyo Gyi inspired audience
members to join the global movement of young people determined to Walk Free.
"It
is such a privilege to be in Myanmar, with MTV Exit, to launch Walk Free's
global business campaign against modern slavery. This concert is a landmark
event, and one we are very proud to be part of," said Nick Grono, CEO of
Walk Free.
Later
in the evening, in a great moment demonstrating regional support,
representatives of ASEAN, including Danny Lee, Director Community Affairs
Development, ASEAN Secretariat; Khine Myat Chit, Senior Officer in the Security
Cooperation Division at the ASEAN Secretariat; and Mr. Aung Htoo, Director of
the ASEAN Affairs Department in Myanmar; came on stage to encourage the crowd to
get informed and protect themselves and their friends and family to avoid
falling victim to the transnational crime of human trafficking.
“Human
trafficking is a transborder issue that requires transborder solutions,” stated
David Carden, U.S. Ambassador to ASEAN. “We are working with local, regional
and international authorities to address this devastating practice to promote
human security for all citizens of ASEAN.”
MTV EXIT Live in Myanmar will air across MTV's international networks in on 8 March 2013 as a special edition of “MTV World Stage,” MTV’s weekly live music series. Available in more than a half-billion homes, the program will feature footage taken from concert performances, interviews and key information about human trafficking.
This ground-breaking event was made possible by the on-going support of
MTV EXIT from the Australian Government’s Agency for International Development
(AusAID), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
and Walk Free, a global movement to end modern-day slavery; and produced in partnership with the Government of the Republic of the Union
of Myanmar, the United Nations Inter-Agency Project Against Human Trafficking
(UNIAP) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Human trafficking is a tragic crime that enslaves and exploits its
victims, the majority of which are women and children. There are more than 20
million people living in slavery around the world with Myanmar and Southeast
Asia particularly affected. The concert forms part of a wider initiative that
seeks to educate and train youth through innovative television programming,
digital content, capacity building workshops and community-based events. MTV
EXIT Live in Myanmar follows the production of two Myanmar MTV EXIT
documentaries on human trafficking, which were broadcast in 2010 and 2012 on
national television to educate the public about the dangers of trafficking.
MTV EXIT is also proud to partner with
Edelman, the world’s largest public relations firm. For more information, visit
www.mtvexit.org or follow MTV EXIT on the following social
media platforms: Twitter @mtvexit, Facebook www.facebook.com/mtvexit, Google+ www.google.com/+MTVEXIT
and YouTube www.youtube.com/mtvef.
For more media information, contact:
Fearne (Wanwipa
Wilawan), MTV EXIT | Email: wanwipa.wilawan@mtvexit.org / media@mtvexit.org | Thai Number:
+66 89799 9442
More Information:
MTV EXIT
The MTV
EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking) campaign is an
award-winning multimedia initiative to raise awareness and increase
prevention of human trafficking and exploitation. MTV EXIT was launched in
Europe in 2004 and expanded across Asia with USAID in 2007. To date MTV EXIT
has produced an extensive catalogue of powerful TV programming to promote
awareness about human trafficking. MTV documentaries include Sold: An MTV EXIT Special
presented by Lara Dutta; Traffic: An MTV EXIT Special, presented by Lucy Liu;
and Inhuman Traffic, presented by Angelina Jolie; each of which have been translated
into a dozen local language versions presented by Asian celebrities such as
Rain of Korea and Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein and R Zarni in Myanmar. Further MTV EXIT
programming also includes short films, public service announcements, animated
drama and music videos. MTV EXIT and Radiohead collaborated on an
anti-exploitation video for their song All I Need, which premiered across MTV’s
global network with similar collaborations with The Killers, MUSE, The Click
Five, etc. MTV EXIT has also established partnerships with over 100
non-governmental organizations, distributed hundreds of thousands of
anti-trafficking brochures in over 25 languages, and reached out to millions of
young people through anti-trafficking messages at concerts and music festivals
featuring R.E.M., Radiohead, The White Stripes, The Hives, Thievery
Corporation, Placebo, Jason Mraz and hundreds of other international and local
artists. For more information visit www.mtvexit.org
USAID
USAID, the
United States Agency for International Development, is an independent U.S. Government
agency that operates under the foreign-policy direction of the U.S. Secretary
of State. Since 1961, USAID has been the
principal U.S. Government agency extending assistance to countries worldwide
recovering from disaster, trying to escape poverty, and engaging in democratic
reforms. USAID’s Regional Development
Mission for Asia, based in Bangkok, oversees a broad portfolio of regional and
transnational programs, and also provides support to several USAID bilateral
missions in Asia as well as manages programs in countries in which it does not
have a permanent presence. Its regional
approach addresses problems that cross national boundaries, such as human and
wildlife trafficking, HIV/AIDS, natural resources conservation, trade, and
political and economic conflict. Please
see www.usaid.gov for more information.
AusAID
AusAID is
the Australian Agency for International Development. Australia’s development
assistance is guided by the Millennium Development Goals, the internationally
agreed targets for poverty reduction, and by the Australian aid program’s
objective to assist developing nations to reduce poverty and achieve
sustainable development. Australia works with NGOs, multilateral institutions
and volunteers, as well as directly with national governments. Australia’s
support to the MTV EXIT Campaign complements other anti-trafficking work AusAID
is undertaking in the region. These projects include the Asia Regional
Trafficking in Persons (ARTIP) Project, which aims to strengthen the capacity
of criminal justice agencies in South East Asia to respond to human trafficking;
Project TRIANGLE, which works with governments in the region to improve the
living and working conditions of migrants; and Project Childhood, which seeks
to better protect children from child sex tourism and improve government
systems to put the perpetrators of this crime behind bars. See www.ausaid.gov.au for more information.
Walk Free
Walk Free is a new movement of
people everywhere working together to end one of the world’s greatest evils:
modern slavery. As we build our community across the world with the powerful
tools of new technologies and social media, we will seek change at local,
national and global levels. Walk Free’s aim is to mobilise citizens,
governments, businesses and communities to take action – so that slavery in all
its forms is brought to an end, and people everywhere can walk free. www.walkfree.org
Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN)
The
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established on 8 August
1967. The Member States of the Association are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and
Vietnam. The ASEAN Secretariat is based in Jakarta, Indonesia. General
information on ASEAN appears on-line at the ASEAN Website: www.asean.org.
Human Trafficking
Human
Trafficking is defined by the United Nations as “the recruitment, transportation,
and receipt of a person for sexual or economical exploitation by force, fraud,
coercion, or deception” in order to make a profit. It is a form of modern-day
slavery with the UN estimating that there are more than 20 million people
living in slavery around the world, with the majority of these victims in Asia
and the Pacific. It is the second-largest illegal trade after drugs, with
criminal traffickers earning over US$32 billion every year through the buying
and selling of human beings. Often, victims are young men and women – the MTV
demographic – who are guilty only of wanting a better life.
All the best,
MTV EXIT Communications Team
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