Source: stereoboard

After producing the string arrangements on ex-Sudanese war child Emmanuel Jal’s ‘We Want Peace’ charity single, music icon Peter Gabriel has joined a host of other celebrity names in raising awareness to ensure the Sudanese referendum on Sunday January 9th remains a peaceful affair.

“I have been horrified at the reports of the potential for civil war in the Sudan after the election,” says Gabriel. “Emmanuel Jal is an inspiring and charismatic young musician and, considering most of the fighting in these wars is actually carried out by young people, I believe Emmanuel’s impassioned campaign for peace will be much more likely to reach them.”

Alongside Peter Gabriel, Jal has gathered further support from the likes of George Clooney, Alicia Keys, Kofi Annan, Jimmy Carter and Richard Branson, all of whom appear in the music video for ‘We Want Peace’, which was directed by Gabriel’s daughter, Anna Gabriel. Annie Lennox and MC Hammer are also supporting Emmanuel’s ‘We Want Peace’ campaign via Twitter and Facebook.

Says Emmanuel Jal, “It is a simple concept. If people around the world don’t know what is happening in Sudan, their governments will not feel compelled to concern themselves, either. This Sunday, a referendum will take place in my country that will almost inevitably be controversial, causing anything from tension to wide-scale war and genocide… Had the world known that 6 million Jews would die during the Second World War then they would have done something about it. We need to shine as bright a light as possible on Sudan in the coming days so that the impending evil of war simply cannot prevail.”