Magazine
Bono: Celebrity is a currency to be used to bring about change
U2’s Paul Hewson popularly known as Bono. Photo/FILE
Posted Monday, April 12 2010 at 00:00
He is a rock star with a difference. While fellow musicians would rate record sales and well attended concerts as their greatest achievements, Irish star and philanthropist Bono considers political activism most fulfilling.
To his credit, he was involved in the successful lobbying by civil society groups for cancellation of debts owed by African states to the tune of $70 billion.
According to Bono, the debt cancellation has kept over 35 million children in school. This does not mean, however, that Bono does not take music seriously.
Music is what made him famous first. Between his crammed schedule meeting world leaders to drum up support for initiatives against poverty and other world problems, he still finds time to record and perform with his award winning Irish band U2.
“We have recorded a new set of songs and we are going on tour in June and July. The mood in the band is good,” the singer said in a recent interview with The EastAfrican in Nairobi.
To him, being a social activist is more important, and insists that his band does not mind him indulging in activism because “everyone is equal in the band.”
Bono became involved in activism two decades ago when he was approached by South Africa’s Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former president Nelson Mandela to join the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa.
With that struggle won, he directed his energies at pushing for the cancellation of debt for developing countries and eventually fighting poverty and the HIV/Aids pandemic. Over the years, this has made him one of the world’s best known celebrities-cum-activists.
However, Bono does not consider himself a celebrity, his band’s successes — which include bagging several Grammy Awards, in addition to other recognitions — notwithstanding.
“I twitch whenever I am called a celebrity. I think I have earned the right not to be called one,” he says.
He also believes he is neither a philanthropist though he is deeply involved in philanthropic work, and instead describes his role on the world stage as pure activism. “I am only interested in justice. That’s all,” he says.
Such is the non-conformist nature of the rock star. Though he refers to himself as “half Catholic,” he does not consider religion and denomination to be a big deal.
This, he says, is informed by the difficult lessons on the sensitivity of religion in his younger days in Ireland, having been born of a Catholic father and Protestant mother in a country deeply divided by faith.
“We are suspicious of religion. Though I don’t talk about religion a lot, drink too much and use expletives, I believe in God,” he says.
His contradictory life does not end there. While he is a staunch advocate of debt cancellation and increased support for poor states, he emphasises that such gestures must be accompanied by tough conditionalities for developing countries. He considers anything short of this as “irresponsible lending.”
“Aid is a bridge and is necessary for developing countries, but is of no use if it does not reach the people it is intended for. We are not part of the old trend of pleading for aid and when it is given, no one cares how it is spent,” he says.
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