Copenhagen - This year's Africa Day celebration in Copenhagen marked
the inauguration of the "Right to Play Cup," a human rights soccer
championship co-organized by the Danish African Soccer Academy (DASAC)
and Youth for Human Rights Denmark". DASAC is the creation of former
professional soccer player Hamid Faiz Junior and the event sought to
encourage young African children in the city to become involved in
sports, not drugs and crime.
The main attraction of the day was a soccer tournament, pitting the
Star Team (Stjerneholdet), former professional athletes including past
members of the national soccer team, against a team of African
players.
The event raised funds to help build a playing field and school for a
soccer academy Mr. Faiz runs for 300 street children in Malindi,
Kenya.
The Copenhagen Football Association (KBU) invited all Copenhagen
soccer clubs to attend and donate equipment for the Malindi, Kenya
project. Among the well-known artists who provided entertainment for
the day were the My Gospel Girls Youth Choir and Charles Kinga and the
Reggaelution
The "Right to Play" cup gets its name from a phrase coined by Youth
for Human Rights International to summarize the concept of article 24
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A video clip about this
right, which appears on the Youth for Human Rights International web
site, inspired this competition.
was one of the speakers at the event. She said "We support the Youth
for Human Rights education campaign because human rights is a priority
in our religion. Scientology Founder, L. Ron Hubbard, placed so much
importance on human rights that he made it the first point in the
Creed of the Church of Scientology: 'We of the Church believe that all
men of whatever race, color, or creed were created with equal rights.'
We are committed to seeing that all young people can be proud of who
they are and accomplish their dreams."