Every year an increasingly higher number of people die attempting to reach Europe. Besides the over 10,000 migrants who have perished trying to cross the Mediterranean since 2014, there are also thousands of people who have lost their lives crossing the desert of the many countries in transit along the route. Even more people, once they arrive in Libya, become victims of abuse, rape, theft, torture and illegal detention.
Migrants arriving in Italy – especially those from Western African countries – often say they left their country without a precise idea about the real travel conditions and they would have never imagined the level of violence they would have had to endure.
The “Aware Migrants” campaign was launched with the objective of informing migrants about the risks of travel to put them in the condition to make a free and informed decision. The project is financed by the Department of Civil Liberties and Immigration of the Italian Ministry of the Interior and implemented with the cooperation of IOM (International Migration Organization).
The name of the campaign – “Aware Migrants” – wants to clearly illustrate the nature of the project: an informative, multicultural and universal campaign that talks about migration and awareness. The integrated multimedia project includes digital channels of a website in three languages and social media combined with traditional media such as TV and radio commercials.
In this communication architecture, music is the universal language of solidarity, a way to share experiences and an outstanding instrument for conveying the message. The message is entrusted to the music and voice of Rokia Traoré, an internationally renowned performer from Mali who has always treated the themes of intercultural issues and migration with sensitivity in her two-decade career.
For this purpose, Rokia worked in the past months with her team – in recording studios in Brussels and Bamako – to prepare the song she wrote for the occasion: “Be aware brother, be aware sister.” The song, accompanied by a video clip directed by Gilles Delmas, will be one of the mainstays of the campaign: it will be promoted extensively through the awaremigrants.org website and social networks and can be freely downloaded from the web starting at the end of October. In particular, the intention is to promote and broadcast the song especially in the main countries of Africa with the most potential migrants.
To make her song truly universal, Rokia used several languages such as French, English and Arabic as well as African languages and has already announced her intention to add the song to her concert repertoire.
Be aware
Be aware
Na kanda anatou (be aware in soniké)
Ka fo i ka don (be aware in bambara)
Yébéla n’déko (be aware in lingala)
Fonia angué (be aware in swahili)
Hris’ik taharaf (be aware in magrebian arab)
As far as you are part of life, regardless of sorrow that you feel from the wounds of your time, don’t give up hope, trust in yourself, trust in a better life possible.
The greatest call comes from life through the air you breathe, through the light you see, through the singing of wind.
Feel great, set free the best in you, fight hard to get it right
Be aware
Be aware
Na kanda anatou (be aware in soniké)
Ka fo i ka don (be aware in bambara)
Yébéla n’déko (be aware in lingala)
Fonia angué (be aware in swahili)
Hris’ik taharaf (be aware in magrebian arab)
Good, life is good
Hope is not in the desert
In the deep ocean there is no life for Human beings
Fighting hard to be well, joyful and remain hopeful
May your strength drives you to the most gratifying chanlange
The only limit to great possibilities is the one who marks where life ended
Dangerous, misleading, malicious voyage
Failing of a world loosing its bearings
Be aware
Be aware
Na kanda anatou (be aware in soniké)
Ka fo i ka don (be aware in bambara)
As far as you are part of life, regardless of sorrow that you feel from the wounds of your time, don’t give up hope, trust in yourself, trust in a better life possible.
Hope is not in the desert
In the deep ocean there is no life
Be aware brother, Be aware sister
Good, life is good
Fighting hard to be well, joyful and remain hopeful
Good, life is good
Fighting hard to be well, joyful and remain hopeful