Patrick Burgess’ new single, ‘Stolen Children’ tells the story of Nina, one of the thousands of children taken from their parents by Indonesian soldiers during the military occupation of then East Timor. Thirty years later Patrick and others from the non-profit Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR) have been painstakingly tracing some of those children in Indonesia and bringing them home to their parents, many of whom believe their child had died decades before. The song follows six year old Nina’s journey:
“I was holding on tight to your old blue dress when the car came into view,
The man in green said I’ll take this one, I thought he meant to school,
They put me in the car and drove away, rivers of tears ran down your face,
Thirty years pass slowly by, mama, but today I’m coming home, I’m coming home.”
Patrick’s resonant vocal wanders across a bed of chiming guitars, bass and drums, with contributions from some of Australia’s most well-known musicians including drummer Rob Hirst from Midnight Oil and multi-instrumentalist Paul di Giacomo (Taman Shud, Matt Finish.)
All proceeds from the ‘Stolen Children’ release will go directly to the program to reunite more of those who were taken as children during the conflict in Timor Leste with their families. You can also show your support by downloading the Stolen Children single on BANDCAMP: https://patburgess.bandcamp.com or donate via AJAR here: https://stolenchildrentimorleste.raisely.com
‘STOLEN CHILDREN’ – OUT NOW on BANDCAMP and all other digital platforms!!
Music Video out 02.05.23
Download ‘Stolen Children’ & show your direct support on Bandcamp: https://patburgess.bandcamp.com
Listen on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/43VPkYt
Tune in on Apple Music: https://apple.co/3N3imPT
For more information on the Stolen Children project and more of Patrick Burgess’ Human Rights work go to:
Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR) www.asia-ajar.org
The ABC television Foreign Correspondent show on the Stolen Children of Timor can be viewed on ABC iView or on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu_EUpLtMYg
The film ‘Nina and the stolen children of Timor Leste,’ can be viewed at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu_EUpLtMYg
