"Hands Of Hope" Tells The Story Of A Refugee Girl's Flight From War

UNHCR is proud to present the HANDS OF HOPE video, the first of its kind in Malaysia - which is part of a multi-media awareness campaign on refugees produced through the collaboration with ad agency EURO RSCG Kuala Lumpur.

"Hands" tell the story of a young refugee girl"s flight of terror from war and separation from her family, only to find greater uncertainty and danger while in exile. Ultimately, the message at the end is one of hope that helping hands can turn tragic stories into happy endings.

It is a brilliantly-produced piece, where the blend of powerful narration and music meet beautifully-rendered graphics to tell a compelling tale.

Hands feature strongly in this TV ad to illustrate the power for action, be it for good or evil, for protection or destruction, that lie in the hands of each individual. The power to make the change is in the individual"s hands.

Focus groups (Malaysians and non-Malaysians) when shown the TV ad, have responded positively, and have been impressed both by the relevant content matter and the quality of its production.

This is the first time that a Malaysian-produced TV ad on refugee issues will be used in a worldwide public awareness campaign.

View the TV ad below or download a copy here.

ABOUT THE "HANDS OF HOPE" CAMPAIGN

The HANDS OF HOPE campaign begun, as many great ideas do, with a small group of concerned individuals who volunteered their time and harnessed their creativity to give a voice to the voiceless - the refugees.

The result is an insightful, thought-provoking and highly creative set of media materials (TV ad/Public Service Announcement, print ad, table top ad and poster set) that revolutionises the way we communicate on refugee issues.

Objectives of the campaign:

Humanise the refugee issues: To strip away any political baggages that tend to be associated with the issue, and present it at a fundamental, humanitarian level. 

Define the refugee: To clear public misconceptions or misunderstandings of who the refugee is. 

Tell the refugee"s story: To encourage understanding of why the refugee was compelled to flee his/her country and the circumstances that forced this to happen, and to create empathy for their plight while living in exile.