Youth Unite for Peace in Mindanao,Rocksteddy Rock'd @ Kidapawan

ADVOCACY SATURDAY: The time has come for music and lyrics, not bombings and gunfire to rock the island of Mindanao. On Friday March 6, thousands of Mindanaoan youth, Christians and Muslims, welcomed the visiting ROCKSTEDDY Band and united for peace in Kidapawan, Cotabato---one of Mindanao's most feared armed conflict areas. The joyful celebration for peace was organized by Asia America Initiative (AAI), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting humanitarian ideals, through its volunteer youth arm Catalysts for Peace (AAI-CFP) - Cotabato chapter with Young Public Servants (YPS) and Youth Vote Philippines. The benefit concert at JC Complex, Kidapawan City was dubbed: MUSIKAMINDANAOAN: Building Catalysts for Peace and Responsible Voting. Local talents SKOLARZ BAND, A DAYLIGHT SERPENT BAND, UNITE STREET BAND, OFF LIMITZ DANCERS, PRINCE AND PRINCESS REPUBLIC, and PUSAKAL DOLLS also performed.

Giving life to the partnership battlecry, "I Vote and I Stand for Peace", thousands of high-spirited Mindanaoans celebrated life and hope through arts and music. It was a showcase of local performers' star potential and of the audience's practice of their first adult responsibility - registering for the 2010 elections and participating in peace initiatives for Mindanao. It was truly a night of good crowd, great music, and good causes: peace - building and responsible voting.

"The responsibility of achieving peace in our homeland (Mindanao) is vested upon us Mindanaoans. WE should be the prime movers of justice and social development for we are the fruit of our homeland's rich culture and extraordinary wealth." - a powerful statement from AAI Philippines Director Rohaniza Sumndad.

The Rocksteddy Band spiced up the night and engaged the crowd to shout their heart out for peace and development in Mindanao. Singing the song "Gising Na", the band cast their charms on the Kidapaweños to act and wake up from the long sleep of apathy and blindness of the reality. As stated by Teddy, band's lead vocalist, "The whole Kidapawan Gig was both an amazing and an eye opening experience for us. It was also such a humbling experience for us to be part of an event with a greater cause such as this---to use music to promote peace, raise awareness for youth voters and ultimately bless the youth in Mindanao. Personally, I just wish some of the press will be a bit more enthusiastic about it. Nevertheless, I know for sure that all AAI-CFP's and our labors were not in vain."

Thanks for the LGUs who made this concert possible: Hon. Cong. Bernardo Jun Piñol 2nd District - North Cotabato, Office of the Provincial Governor Jesus Sacdalan, Office of the Provincial Vice Governor Manny Piñol, Local Government Unit of Kidapawan City, and SK Federation - Kidapawan City. The event would have not been possible without the support of the following sponsors: JC Complex, Notredame Broadcasting Corporation, Northwest Cable Network, ELVIRS Cellcom, BOYAKS Resto, Sugni Superstore, SMART, Mediatrix Coop, ASIA PRO Cooperative, Boylyns Lodge, Mt. Apo Tarpaulin and Poster Printing, San Miguel Beer, and BOBONG Salon and Friends.

Asia America Initiative- Catalysts for Peace in Cotabato as they celebrate their long dreamed and hard earned success in organizing MUSIKAMINDANAOAN: Building Catalysts for Peace

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