 |
Friday 7th November 2008 saw over 500 people from the worlds of fashion, music and sport as well as the art glitterati gather at the Sofitel Hotel in London for The Graffiti Ball, in aid of the Consortium for Street Children (CSC).
The Consortium for Street Children (CSC) a collection of 58 charities, including Amnesty and World Vision, is the only global network promoting and protecting the rights of street children across the world. Hosted by Surina Narula MBE (Co Chair for CSC) and Max Mongia (Trustee for CSC), The Grafitti Ball was a huge success in helping to raise the much needed profile of street children across the globe.
|
|
|
The “street” inspired event held strong support from the music, sports, and fashion industries, as well the profound art sector. Attendance was seen from an array of international and British celebrities and high profile dignitaries including comedian Richard Blackwood cricketer and Strictly Come Dancing superstar Mark Ramprakash, Eastenders actress Nina Wadia and star of Doctors Seeta Indrani, among many others.
The event was opened by a moving and informative speech from Surina Narula MBE on the importance and focus of the CSC and the work that has taken place across the world and UK. A flying BMX bike show and human beat boxer took the show’s street theme to the next level and opened the all named fashion show. Six international design houses, including Rina Dhaka, Ritu Beri, Sonu Nilibar, Antonio Lucci, fashion label “OO” by Anoosh and Aftershock, showcased new lines against the Graffiti inspired backdrop. The cream of the outfits, including one modelled by actress Ferena Wazier, were then auctioned on the evening raising a substantial sum.
Amidst explosive urban stunts a show of street dancers and body lockers and poppers, host, renowned TV and radio presenter Nikki Bedi, and side splitting comedian Richard Blackwood, kept the 500 strong guests entertained. The event culminated in a spectacular live auction noted by former Christie’s auctioneer Samir Sharma who took bids on unique items including private ballroom dancing lessons with Karen Hardy of Strictly Come Dancing Fame, a day of golf with Mark Ramprakash, dinner for four with Sir Ian Botham OBE and many others. All the auctions proved incredibly successful and helped to raise much needed funds for the CSC.
In speaking about the worthy event, Co-Chair of the CSC, Ms Surina Narula MBE says: “It is a travesty that the numbers of innocent children continue to work helplessly on the streets of their countries. The injustices and hardships that they face go beyond belief and, rather than receiving the aid and support they need, they are subjected to lives of social rejection and deemed as deviants. The global community typically refers to “street children” as residing in developing countries and forget that developed countries such as the UK mask the growing problem, choosing to ignore it instead of addressing it.
I feel privileged to have the opportunity to work with a strong committee of 68 volunteers which includes “The Next Generation” team - 26 younger members who share the same passion and vision on The Graffiti Ball. We are honoured to have these dedicated members on board and are proud of their ongoing endeavours and their relentless work in supporting the CSC by helping those who are less fortunate than themselves.
The Consortium for Street Children has been working conscientiously and collectively with charity organisations across 89 countries to create awareness in promoting the rights, development and protection of street children worldwide; embracing a common vision in creating a world where children have a voice, where children have a choice, and are protected from abuse and neglect.”
Some of the recent work and success carried out by the CSC is exemplified by a Special Service Agreement (institutional contractor) entered into with UNICEF to train police trainers of the Ethiopian Police University College (EPUC) in child rights and child protection, as well as how to carry out child abuse investigations. The project was implemented in partnership with the Ethiopian Police University College (EPUC). As a result, a training of trainers’ manual was produced in Amharic and 49 police trainers were trained over a two-week period. In turn, they are expected to train 36,000 police officers over the next three years. The course also included practical tips on how to improve training skills. The course was based on research the Consortium carried out around the world on the juvenile justice system, with a special focus on street children.
|
RSS Feed 
