British duo Mattafix tackle head-on the world's current most pressing humanitarian crisis on their new single, 'Living Darfur'.
The pair travelled to Eastern Chad, on the border of Darfur, to film the clip to the single. They are the latest in a long line of activists help raise awareness for the plight of the further 500,000 people displaced in the region over the last 15 months, taking the total number of political refugees to 2.4 million.Marlon Roudette of Mattafix explains that the band were approached by several human rights lawyers "to provide the music for a visual campaign aimed at raising awareness and putting pressure on governments around the world to help stop the violence."
He continues, "During my stay I also began to appreciate our own role as a mouthpiece for the movement. The staff at the base were keen to educate me in the complexities of the situation both politically and logistically. NGOs in the region are forced to walk the tightrope of diplomacy as they constantly try to cope with the bureaucracy of helping millions of people often against the wishes of their government. On the plane journey back to London I began thinking how far we still have to go to secure the basic human rights for the people of Darfur and Eastern Chad. In a year that was supposed to mark the bicentennial of the abolition of slavery we must face the reality; millions of our people are still not free."
All proceeds from the single will go toward Oxfam, Crisis Action and the Save Darfur Coalition.
You can find out more about the crisis at the Save Darfur Coalition website.
