Interview: NOBEL PEACE PRIZE RECIPIENT Kailash Satyarthi on Bajao For A Cause Campaign With Red FM

Kailash Satyarthi is known for his activism centered around children. The Nobel Peace prize recipient and founder of Bachpan Bachao Andolan, has collaborated with Radio channel RED FM to launch an year long campaign for safe childhood in India.

The Nobel laureate believes that in this age of digitization, radio remains a powerful medium to reach the masses and often penetrate the minds.

BWW talks to the Nobel Laureate on his campaign and radio as a means of mass communication

1. Talk to us about your initiative with RED FM- Bajao for a cause

My foundation has collaborated with Red FM to make legal, medical and financial aid more accessible for child victims of sexual abuse and trafficking. Every hour, 4 children are sexually abused in India and every 8 minutes a child goes missing, never to be found again. More often than not, these children are sold for sexual slavery, made to work in hazardous conditions and used as bonded labour. They are being stripped of their innocence, their dreams and their childhood. With everyone's support, we can defeat this evil, provide justice to those who have suffered, and ultimately remove this stain on our nation's honour.

2. Why do you think Red FM radio will be a powerful channel to get the message across to the masses?

Radio as a broadcast medium has the potential to reach a far greater audience. It has the potential to touch our hearts directly. It is like a companion that travels with us through the day - in our cars, and our homes. When I started my work almost four decades before, radio was a tool for my activism. I believe that with RedFM, we can take the message of "Surakshit Bachpan" (translated: Safe Childhood) to millions of households. I trust that the cause of children is very important to RedFM. This joint initiative will help to restore the childhood of those children who have been victims of exploitation.

3. Talk to us about your book Every Child Matters. What were your thoughts while penning the book?

My book is a compilation of columns and interviews which highlight the continuing struggle to create safe childhood. Readers will find much to introspect after going through this collection. Every child matters and every word matters, if we want to live with truth, justice, righteousness and peace. But today, children are forced to lose their childhood and words are made shallow, due to lack of humanity and compassion. I always try to use words which can ignite a spark of hope in the darkness of fear. I write when I am desperate to connect minds and souls for our children. My articles are the expression of urgency for action. My writings are a reflection of my struggle, they are my anger at our apathy, they are my hope that I can inspire ideas and actions that can change politics and practices.

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