Coldplay to play India as anti-poverty concert expands

NEW YORK -- Rockers Coldplay will play their first-ever show in India in a free performance as the anti-poverty Global Citizen Festival on Friday announced an expansion.

The festival, which distributes tickets in return for individual actions to fight extreme poverty, said it would release further details Monday.

But it confirmed Coldplay's participation and said the November 19 show in Mumbai would be free after press reports in India said the concert would be exorbitantly expensive.

The Global Citizen Festival, established in 2012, takes place each year in New York's Central Park on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to push world leaders to put anti-poverty efforts high on the agenda.

"Just like our annual festival in Central Park, tickets to the Indian festival will be free. Fans will earn them through taking actions in support of education, equality and sanitation campaigns," the festival said on its website.

It noted that the Mumbai concert would take place on World Toilet Day, which draws attention to sanitation problems.

While most Coldplay fans likely have indoor plumbing, around half of Indians do not have regular access to modern toilets, presenting a major public health hazard.

Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin serves as the creative director of the Global Citizen Festival.

India is not a new interest for Coldplay, whose video for "Hymn for the Weekend," released in January, was shot in the country, although critics said it presented stereotypical images.

The latest New York edition of the Global Citizen Festival, to take place on September 24, will feature R&B superstar Rihanna, metal greats Metallica and leading rapper Kendrick Lamar.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi appeared at the festival in 2014 to lend his support to its goals.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

UN calls for end to open defecation amid Ebola threat

GENEVA, Switzerland - The UN called Wednesday for an end to defecation in the open, with fears growing that it has helped spread the deadly Ebola virus ravaging west Africa.

Half the population of Liberia, the country worst hit by the epidemic, have no access to toilets, while in Sierra Leone nearly a third of people live without latrines, a new UN report to coincide with World Toilet Day estimated.

Before it was declared Ebola-free last month, Nigeria warned against defecating in the open to guard against the virus, which spreads through contact with bodily fluids.

The report said nearly a billion people worldwide are forced to go to the toilet in the open.

But the health risks of the practice are not confined to Ebola.

In sub-Saharan Africa, where the UN said a quarter of the population defecate outside, diarrhoea is the third biggest killer of children under five years old.

Studies estimate that a child dies every 2.5 minutes because of unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation and hygiene, the report said.

Women suffer most from the lack of facilities, with girls often denied schooling because of a lack of toilets, said UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson.

"Girls are more likely to drop out of school if they don't have access to a safe and clean toilet. Women and girls can also risk harassment and sexual abuse when trying to find somewhere to defecate in the open. Universal access to sanitation has a clear role to play in defending women's safety, dignity and equality," he said.

Progress had been made, but a lack of money continued to hinder progress, with the 80 percent of open defecation confined to 10 countries.

Nearly half the world total for those who have no access to toilets are in India, followed in Asia by Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal and China.

In Africa, 39 million people do not have toilets in Nigeria, with high rates also in Ethiopia, Sudan, Niger and Mozambique.

Eliasson said that "success at ending open defecation goes beyond infrastructure. It requires the understanding of behaviours, cultural attitudes and social norms."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com