Pitter Patter.....

Been a pretty packed couple of days, lots going on.....

Went on a shoot on Thursday with a french photojournalist, Henry, who does productions for Discovery and Nat Geo. He's doing a story on the Burmese refugees here in Malaysia. I just helped out the camera man, carrying tripods, etc... But learnt a hell lot that day. The shoot was at this little shop house downtown, which was the HQ for the Alliance of Chin Refugees.

We started early, at about 9am. There were already more than 50 refugees there, waiting to get registered and get an ACR card (which is really just for ID, it can't stop them from getting arrested, only a UNHCR card will do that). But the real reason most of them were there that day was because there was a free clinic (which only happens once a month). Two volunteer doctors were slowly doing check ups on as many people as they could get through. Many of the refugees there had only just crossed over the Thai border a few days earlier (having walked all the way from Burma). They were living in makeshift camps in the jungles behind Putrajaya, up near Cameron Highlands, and other parts of the country. It was a big risk for them to come to the city, but most needed the medical attention.

There was a young 18 year old girl there who was taking a pregnancy test. Man was she nervous, rubbing her hands together constantly, while waiting for the results. We sat there with her, watching the little stick, waiting for it to turn red or blue. Turns out she was pregnant, and she was ecstatic! Apparently, many of the young girls try to get pregnant cause it makes it a hell lot easier to get registered at UNHCR. A lot of the other refugees were also trying to forge indentities, stealing other (sicker) people's x-rays and even going as far as saying that they were HIV+ so as to get registered with UNHCR.

They had stories to tell. An elderly couple there, were finally being sent to the states after 3 years of waiting here in Malaysia. The wife was a nurse, helping the doctors. Her husband was being treated for some skin infection thing. He was a civil engineer, who'd spent some years in prison in Burma because he refused to be an engineer for the army. Another elderly man there was translating between the doctors and patients. He spoke perfect english, and mentioned that he was also a writer for some burmese journals. It definitely wasn't fair to assume that they were all uneducated farmers....

As depressing as it was seeing the helplessly sick there, I was surprised that they were hardly ever moaning or groaning. They always smiled and were very polite and accomodating, considering we had a huge camera in their face the whole time.

There were also many children there. A little girl about six or seven years old was coughing non-stop. She reminded me of my lil sis, who was also sitting at home with a cough. But after the doctor examined the little girl, it turned out that she had TB. It made me realize how much we take for granted. When my lil sister gets sick, we can immediately get her to the hospital to get checked out. These children have no such priviledge, and usually get really sick before they have a chance to see a doctor, if at all.....

There was also a french volunteer there who ran a little operation for the women and children, teaching them to be more independant. She had a little room there with about 3 sewing machines for the women to make handicrafts to sell. They were actually doing quite well with that, to the extent that they were starting to have problems with the men, who seemed to think that they had a right to take the money that the women were making.

I was also surprised to learn that the center didn't actually house any of the refugees, despite there being a couple of rooms. They were welcome to stay for the day, but at the end of it, they had to go back to their camps in the jungles. Considering most didn't speak english or malay, i wondered how they traveled back and forth, not being able to understand road signs and that....

While the refugees waited in the main room, they were being handed out packets of condoms with detailed instructions in burmese. While a few got red-faced at the sight of the condoms, many refused to take them because they had no idea what they were. Henry told me some stories where he had gone to some of the camps for HIV testing and condom distribution. They had shown the refugees how to use the condoms with a bamboo pole as an example. When they returned the next time they found all the condoms they had distibuted had been used, but on bamboo poles outside the camps... HIV/AIDS isn't that rampant among the refugees, but the condoms are also given out in the camps to try and stop the refugees from having children they can't afford...

That day was quite an experience. It's definitely not cut out for everbody. You gotta have a hell lot of patience, and not be scared to get your hands dirty. And you have to be completely selfless, and have the passion to have to deal with it day in and day out. I have a lot of respect for the doctors and volunteers there, they just do it, no questions asked, and expect nothing in return..... am looking forward to the next shoot where we'll prob head into the jungles to their camps....



In contrast, the next day i went with mum to the Global Brand Forum. I didn't quite know anything about the forum apart from the fact that Oliver Stone was going to be speaking. Am not a hardcore fan of his (i haven't seen natural born killers... i know, i know, it's a sin), but i did love the Doors, and Any Given Sunday... and really, when else was i gonna get the chance to see a 3 time oscar winner speak....

The forum started with Ivanka Trump speaking. She'd pulled out of actually coming to KL a couple of days earlier, so the organisers put together a hologram type thing (like on CNN) for her to appear at the forum. If you thought she was a blonde rich man's daughter, boy were you wrong. She was really articulate, knew the business inside out and spoke on the Trump brand and what made it the huge real estate empire it is today. The video of her was obviously prerecorded (couldn't really be live considering the time difference), and that angered a lot of the audience since they couldn't interact with her. Of course, everyone dwelled on the fact that she wasn't actually there, rather than what she had to say......

Oliver Stone came on after lunch. He immidiately labeled himself the 'anti-brand', saying that he was no commercial director like Jerry Bruckheimer (thank friggin god...). He went on to explain how he comes to make the movies that he does, mostly in reference to his new movie W (a biopic on Bush jr). Having fought in Vietnam, he said he'd seen the circle of lies and propaganda used by the Bush administration before. The classic use of fear to win votes. He didn't intend to make three movies based on presidents (JFK, Nixon and W), but he found Bush's strategies the last 8 years a fascinating story....

After his talk, they had a panel open for questions that included him, Malika Sherawat (bollywood actress), Samar Kahn (bollywood writer and director), and Farah Kahn (malaysian mega entrepenuer). What was most interesting were the questions that were beeing put forward by the audience. There were a few good ones, but most were a bit, huh? There was one guy who made a point to get up to ask something at every chance he could (more so for attention, everyone clapped harder everytime he got up), but his questions were hardly relevant ( he asked Stone something about movies which were adapted from video games...). Another lady blatanly attacked Malika for being on the same stage at Stone, saying she was nowhere in the same league. Malika, a smart confident woman herself, handled it very well, saying that she was just at the rise of her career and had nowhere the same kind of body of work as Stone, and was honoured to be sitting next to him.

Malika was interesting to listen to. She got up on stage and the shutterbugs started flashing non-stop (she was wearing an incredibly tight small dress)... She talked abt her brand as a rebellious indian actress, going against the bollywood tide (kissing in her movies, gasp!).. She was perfectly aware of her image, but knew how to use it to her advantage, and also dispell ideas that a, some may call skanky, woman couldn't also be smart and independant . Also she mentioned how bollywood needed to collaborate with outside talent if it were ever to be a global industry.

Although i'm not that interested in the business of branding, it was definitely worth it to hear these ppl talk on the subject.... learn something new everyday.....


that's it for now.... back again soon.... g'day!!