Live Earth - A lesson to be learned

Re: # 1

Imran,
Live8 sucessfully reached its objectives, although not to that extent, but it did have an impact. The pressure that was raised for 2005 G8 summit during Live8 concerts, conviced US to double it`s aid to the African countries. ALSO, the pressure helped to get Africa on the agenda of the 2006 G8 summit in St. Petersburg, and during the Africa session, leaders heard all about the lives which have been saved or changed because of the promises they made in 2005.

People in Zambia now have free health care and millions in Tanzania are protected from hunger. Things are changing in Africa: aid, debt cancellation and trade justice work. But things aren’t changing fast enough, it will take time.
Finally, the 2006 G8 did agree a $4bn per year ‘aid for trade’ package. This money is desperately needed to create the right environment for business to flourish. It must be additional to existing aid flows and be delivered quickly to enable Africa to work its own way out of poverty.

World (G8) leaders took some small but important steps towards keeping their promises, they made through the pressure they got from Live8.
It does work, atleast better than the processions, rallies or wheel-jam strikes, which does nothing except creating violence and playing with people`s lives.
In the end, a purpose-aimed concert would just be it. We can`t predict its success or failure in Pakistan UNTIL we try it once. It worked in the West and it shall work here too!

What do you think?

Hussain Shafiq

Re: # 1

Never underestimated the power of awareness. Live Aid of the 80s generated immense awareness to the general public. Most of the western public is aware of the Aids crises due to its association with huge concerts and celebrities such as Geldof and Bono.

Live8 generated further awareness about African poverty crises not to mention the amount of money generated.

And to the author of this article, I do agree- in fact, it is such a coincedence, I was having the same conversation with a friend a few days earlier. I would love to act on this.

[ Live8’s aim was to ‘make poverty history’ ] <<< what was achieved? did they have any sort of effect on povery? or was it just to satisfy their conscience by thiking that they did `something` for the world. The artists performed, the people enjoyed, but what about povery? such events are extremely over-rated. They are for the hippies to enjoy, not for the general people to benefit from. When has a concert ever solved such a critical problem? Ideas without methodology or path to implementation are useless as people dont know what to do except admit that there is a problem.