Hope and homelessness

MARGINALISED to the edges of society, the homeless and urban poor have virtually no rights. The longstanding problems of poverty and homelessness in Malaysia will be highlighted in Homelessness, a photo exhibition presented by Amnesty International (AI) Malaysia. Above are selections from the exhibition.

Homelessness is part of Write Up 4 Rights, a two-day letter-writing marathon and mini-festival at the Annexe Gallery at Central Market, Kuala Lumpur on 12 and 13 Dec 2009. The exhibition will be launched at 11am, followed by a sharing by the photographers at 12pm on the first day of the event.

AI Malaysia’s letter-writing marathon kicks off at 11am to 11pm on 12 Dec, and resumes from 11am to 7pm on 13 Dec. The marathon has been held annually since 2002 to celebrate International Human Rights Day, which falls on 10 Dec. It is part of AI’s global initiative to mobilise the public to speak up, in the form of personal letters, on various human rights cases, and to foster international solidarity to end rights violations beyond one’s own country.

This year AI has initiated a “greeting card action”, where participants can send greeting cards and messages of solidarity to victims of human rights violations and prisoners of conscience. Participants can also write to express concern on selected appeal cases. These letters will then be sent to the relevant authorities. According to AI, many have been released from detention, or saved from torture, rape and disappearance, or even possible death, because of these letters.

Write Up 4 Rights, which will be held in co-operation with Annexe Gallery’s Arts for Grabs weekend, will also consist of talks, film screenings, an art workshop for children, and music performances. For more information, click here.

All pics and captions are courtesy of Amnesty International Malaysia.