UNITED KINGDOM: Sir Bob Geldof, voted 'Man of Peace' by previous Nobel winners, launches Live 8 dvd, saying "we mustn't forget"

It was July 2, 2005 and the world felt united as the Live 8 concerts rocked all corners of the globe. Four months on, in the aftermath of the London bombings, Hurricane Katrina and the Pakistani earthquake, the Live 8 concerts and debt relief for Africa for many is yesterday's news. But the tireless Bob Geldof is back to change that. With the support of some of his international music star friends, the charity rocker launched the Live 8 DVD in London on Thursday (October 27). Geldof was in particularly good spirits as he spoke to reporters at the Vue in Leicester Square. It was announced earlier in the day that the Nobel Peace Laureates, the previous Nobel Peace Prize winners had voted Geldof this year's 'Man of Peace'. The award is given annually by the Peace Prize-winning Laureates to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to international social justice and peace. Geldof will be presented with the award in Rome by previous Nobel winner Michael Gorbachov and the Mayor of Rome, Walter Veltroni, on November 24. The famously wordy rocker-turned-activist was nearly lost of words when he spoke of being honoured with the award. "Well, I'm dismayed, I mean you've got all the guys who have won the (Nobel) Peace Prize saying, 'Well, we give you our one', you know. And it is a bit overwhelming because it is huge. You know, and I kind of think, you've made a mistake, I'm really horrible!" he said. Asked what he hoped to achieve with the DVD, Geldof kept it short and simple. "Money," he said. But he soon returned to his to his true style and added: "Yeah, because the money goes straight to Africa. But it's also good because there's a record of this extraordinary day when the individual was not powerless. When the individual could actually arrest the political agenda and change it. When people who are very removed in their towers of power had to listen, the noise was so loud. When they had to act. And that's what this dvd will remind you of. That every day that you wake up and think things are hopeless, here's a dvd that suggests otherwise." Lending their support to the Live 8 DVD launch were singer Annie Lennox and British rock band Razorlight, who performed in London and Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera, who took to stage in Berlin. "I'm coming back to be part of the continuation of the story because problems in the third world countries are not going away, they are here for some time to come. In fact, Live 8 is a very small part of trying to bring awareness to the issues, trying to bring a platform to the issues, and we cannot walk away from them. Once we made the commitment to that, it would be an embarrassment to walk away," explained Lennox. Lennox who shot to fame with Eurythmics nearly twenty-five years ago, is releasing a greatest hits album next month, the band's first album release in six years. However, the singer refused to comment on the new album, saying the night belonged to Live 8. "Okay, I can talk about Eurythmics and all of those things, but that's a separate issue. Tonight I'm here for Live 8 and I don't want to discuss my own musical achievements because it's a totally separate issue," she said. The Live 8 concerts, staged in London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Moscow, Johannesburg, Tokyo, Toronto and Philadelphia on July 2, 2005, featured some of the world's best contemporary music acts. A separate concert was also staged in Cornwall, featuring a line-up of African artists. The Live 8 dvd features the full line-ups from the London and Philadelphia concerts and excerpts from the other nine shows. The DVD is released on November 7, 2005 in the UK and worldwide November 8, 2005.

ITN Source | November 5, 2005

Tags:. .justice. .commitment. .removed. .philadelphia. .hurricane