TVB Jade wins Asia Pacific Child Rights Award 2007

Hong Kong, November 2, 2007 – Hong Kong broadcaster TVB Jade has won the ABU/CASBAA/UNICEF Child Rights Award 2007 for the documentary"Children Left Behind". 

"Children Left Behind", a 30-minute documentary, chronicles the lonely lives of "home-alone" children in rural villages in China, a problem acutely felt in Hunan, Szechuan and Chongqing provinces. With parents migrating to urban centres in search of work, large numbers of children – over 22 million – are left on their own or under the care of elderly relatives. 

The Asia Pacific Child Rights Award, established in 2001, is jointly organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), the Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) and the United Nations Children's Fund, (UNICEF). The award is presented each year to the best television programming on child rights issues produced in the Asia-Pacific region. It recognizes the efforts of broadcasters in pursuing both the production of top-quality programming related to children and outstanding news coverage of children's issues.

At today's Awards presentation ceremony, held during the annual CASBAA Convention 2007, Catherine Lee Yuk San, the TVB documentary producer was praised for her powerful portrayal of children living without parental care in some of the poorest parts of China. Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF Ambassador, Ms. Miriam Yeung presented the award. She expressed it was a memorable moment that a Hong Kong media has won this prestigious broadcast award and hoped that Asian Pacific broadcasters will continue to produce programme to champion the rights of children. 

Simon Twiston Davies, CEO of CASBAA said, "We are delighted to once again partner with the ABU and UNICEF on this project. Speaking on behalf of the industry, we will continue to make use of our collective broadcasting platforms to promote child rights and the healthy development of children's lives."

Madeline Eisner, UNICEF Regional Communication Advisor for East Asia and the Pacific said:  "This year's award coincides with an important milestone for children. The Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most widely ratified human rights treaty in the world, turns 18. By seeking to share children's stories, uncovering violations of their rights and fostering an understanding of our responsibility towards them, the media plays a critical role in creating a better world for children."

David Astley, Secretary-General of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union said, "The Child Rights Award continues to provide an important platform for broadcasters in the Asia- Pacific to share their quality programming on children's issues. The ABU congratulates TVB Jade for winning the Award this year. Their winning entry "Children Left Behind" is a poignant documentary on issues facing children and we look forward to seeing more and more quality programming on children's rights by Asian broadcasters in the future."

More than 60 entries to the competition were received from Australia, Bhutan, China, Hong Kong SAR of China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Laos PDR, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Sri Lanka.