[Intl-tobacco] Part II: Rally at Thailand's National Art Gallery

[robert weissman]

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Thai/U.S. Youth Crash Philip Morris ASEAN Art Awards Events
August 2-3, 2004 Thailand
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Part II
1) Decade of Protest: Tobacco Control Advocates Decry Tobacco
Sponsorship of Art Awards
2) Event #1: Training Educates Youth About ASEAN Art Awards and Builds
Advocacy Skills
3) Event #2: Rally at National Art Gallery

####

1/ DECADE OF PROTEST: TOBACCO CONTROL ADVOCATES DECRY TOBACCO
SPONSORSHOP OF ART AWARDS

Ever since Philip Morris established the ASEAN Art Awards, tobacco
control groups in South East Asia have been opposing the company=92s
sponsorship of it. Many campaigns have focused on discouraging prominent
organizations and officials from co-sponsoring or otherwise supporting
the awards. In 1994, for example, Thai tobacco control advocates
launched a successful campaign to get Silkaporn University to withdraw
its sponsorship of the Awards. Also in 1994, hundreds of delegates to
the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Paris signed a letter to
the Singapore Prime Minister urging him not to support the Awards. And
in 1996, the theme of World No Tobacco Day was =93Sports and Arts Without
Tobacco.=94

The specific purposes of this year=92s events was to: 1) Discourage
prominent government officials from attending ASEAN Art Awards event and
legitimizing Philip Morris=92 sponsorship of it. 2) Disrupt Philip Morris=
=92
public relations objectives by generating controversy over the company=92s
involvement in the arts.

####

2/ EVENT #1: TRAINING EDUCATES YOUTH ABOUT ASEAN ART AWARDS & BUILDS
ADVOCACY SKILLS

Thai and U.S. youth participated in a 2-day advocacy training leading up
to the ASEAN Art Awards events. Here are a few photos from the training:

Dr. Hatai Chitanondh of the Thai Health Promotion Institute gives some
historical background on Philip Morris=92 sponsorship of the ASEAN Art Awar=
ds
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/1/thpi007.JPG

Youth brainstorm talking points related to the ASEAN Art Awards
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/1/aw004.jpg

Youth prepare posters for the upcoming rallies
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/1/aw013.jpg

Youth do a role play, featuring mock media interviews, for the upcoming
rally
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/1/thpi039.JPG

Additional photos of the youth training are available at:
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/1/

####

3/ EVENT #2: RALLY AT NATIONAL ART GALLERY

On August 2, Philip Morris sponsored a reception for the South East
Asian finalists, company employees, and journalists at the National Art
Gallery in Bangkok. The outside of the Gallery was festooned with signs
and banners advertising the ASEAN Art Awards, prominently featuring the
logos of the Ministry of Culture and ASEAN and noting Philip Morris as
the sponsor.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw030.jpg
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw035.jpg

Right before the event started, Thai and U.S. youth and adult tobacco
control advocates marched with signs and banners to the Gallery from a
hotel several blocks away.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw021.jpg

The rally participants all wore t-shirts with a skull and cross bones
and the text =93How Are Art and Death Related?=94 on the front and on the
back: =93For the Last 10 years, Phillip Morris has been the sponsor of the
ASEAN Art Awards. Publically, they lie and say they are sponsoring only
for the sake of art. Their own documents show that the real reasons are
to create public awareness of their brands and to have access to
government officials":.

Many youth wore Philip Morris ASEAN Art Awards =93Pack of Lies=94 signs
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw022.jpg
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/thpi083.jpg

Upon arrival at the rally site, the procession spread out along the
walkway between two main entrances to the Gallery.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw029.jpg
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw033.jpg
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw036.jpg

A youth dressed up as a grim reaper holds a sign that says =93Thai and
U.S. youth against Philip Morris=94
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw039.jpg

=93The Art of $elling Death=94 sign is held in front of an ASEAN Art Awards
billboard at the entrance to the Gallery
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw037.jpg

A sign featuring a Philip Morris quote about the real reason the company
supports the ASEAN Art Awards
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw025.jpg

This Thai version of the =93Pack of Lies=94 sign translates to =93The Art o=
f
Death=94 http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw023.jpg

A Thai youth holds up =93Tobacco and the arts don=92t mix=94 sign
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw044.jpg

U.S. youth involved with NY=92s Reality Check Program hold a banner that
says =93Don=92t put your dirty money in art=94 (in Thai) and sign =93Philip
Morris + Art =3D Pack of Lies=94
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/thpi092.JPG

Nicole Sutton (HI-US) holds a =93PM ASEAN Art Awards =3D Decade of Deceit=
=94 sign
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw034.jpg

A black banner reads =93Stop Philip Morris manipulation=94 (Thai)
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/thpi065.JPG

If they stood in a particular place, the rally participants could view
the reception attendees mingling in the Gallery courtyard =96 and the
reception attendees could see us. Chris Blitz of Reality Check (NY-US)
holds up a =93Pack of Lies=94 sign for the viewing pleasure of those inside=
.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw040.jpg
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw041.jpg

Many television crews, photographers, and journalists came to cover the
rally, including several who had been inside the reception.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw032.jpg

Philip Morris not only sponsors artists, it kills them. At one point
during the rally, a Malaysian artist being honored added some deadly
irony to the rally when he came outside to smoke a Marlboro cigarette.
He was wary of having his photo taken, but two of his artist friends
praised the rally and posed with the skull and cross bone t-shirts.
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/aw042.jpg

Indeed, not all artists are in with the company. A little while later, a
Thai artist passing by told us of a street theatre against Philip
Morris=92 involvement in the Arts that several Thai artists would be
performing at a nearby park later that weekend.

It was rumored that Thailand=92s Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra himself
would be attending the reception =96 exactly the sort of prominent
official that Philip Morris seeks to influence. A few days before the
reception, a letter was forwarded to the Prime Minister inviting him to
pay a visit to the youth who would be standing outside the Gallery
during the event. In the end, the Prime Minister chose to avoid any
controversy by staying away from the event altogether.

A young Thai girl holds a sign that says (in Thai) =93Philip Morris you
produced those cigarettes, so why don't you smoke them yourself=94
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/thpi086.jpg

More photos of the rally may be viewed at:
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco/photos/asean04/2/


*** IMPORTANT NOTE REGARDING USE OF PHOTOS ***

The photos featured were taken by a number of people. They have been
uploaded to the Essential Action website as a service, but inclusion on
the Essential Action website is not meant to imply ownership of them. If
you would like to use one or more of the photos, please email the urls
to Essential Action <tobacco@essential.org> so that we can confirm which
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---------------------------------------
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Essential Action
P.O. Box 19405
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: +1 202-387-8030
Fax: +1 202-234-5176
Email: tobacco@essential.org
http://www.essentialaction.org/tobacco