Juanes, one of Colombia’s biggest musical icons, has released a video with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to raise awareness on the plight of refugees.
The video is for the International Day for Refugees on June 20.
Colombia has 4.7 million internally displaced refugees from the civil war between paramilitaries, Marxist rebels and government forces. Less than two weeks ago, the issue was highlighted when more than 300 displaced people were forced out of Bogota’s main square.
MORE: More than 300 displacement victims forced out of Bogota’s main plaza
Juanes is one of 20 artists that are collaborating with the UNHCR to make videos for refugee awareness, according to the UNHCR website. Some of the other celebrities include, United States’s singer Barbara Hendrix, Afghanistani writer Khaled Hosseini, and Chinese singer Yao Chen, among others.
“If you are trapped in a war zone, you can stay where you are, but you can be killed. And if you attempt to escape, you risk being raped, kidnapped, or worse. What would you do?” says Juanes in his refugee awareness video from 2012.
Video message from Juanes
Sources
- 2014 UNHCR country operations profile – Colombia (UNHCR)
- Juanes emite un video para concienciar sobre el drama de los refugiados (W Radio)
- Global celebrities launch video messages in support of World Refugee Day 2014 (UNHCR)
