New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Schapelle Corby Official Website) - Download numbers of Tara Hacks' protest song to
Kevin Rudd for imprisoned Australian Schapelle Corby this week reached it highest level to date. The song, "The Wizard Down Under", was an immediate worldwide internet hit on release a couple of months ago, but rather than diminish, download volumes have progressively increased to their current record daily rate.
The song recounts the entire history of the tragedy: the human rights aspect, the politics, the shocking sentence, the media issues, and even the terrible health problems. Its success could not be more timely. A report, by one of Australia's top psychiatrists, recently concluded that her life now "hangs by a thread", as her mental health has collapsed five years into her horrific ordeal.
HUMANITARIAN HELP NEEDED
The psychiatric report, the contents of which were highlighted by Dr Jonathan Phillips last month, paints a shocking picture of a once healthy young woman now reduced to the edge of insanity. Some of his comments were stark and clear statements of how little time may be left for her: "She is now helpless, hopeless, feels useless, she feels alienated, she feels removed from the rest of humanity"; "We have to get proper treatment for Schapelle, outside a jail environment and preferably in Australia, or she will die"; "Schapelle has now cut herself quite severely and many times over on two occasions"
Sarah Hollins of the British support site Schapelle.Net commented: "This is now an urgent and pressing humanitarian need. The bottom line is that Australia has a mentally ill citizen dying in a filthy squalid cell, yet the government hasn't lifted a finger to help her. I am appalled, and the world is increasingly appalled."
She continued: "In 2005, prior to being elected to government, Kevin Rudd made clear statements indicating his concern for Schapelle. Now, in power, despite her life being at serious risk, he appears to be in hiding. She has been holding on for five long years, and now desperately needs to be in a hospital in her home country just to survive. Yet she is still in the hell of her cell, slowly dying. Day by day, dying a torturous mentally agonizing death. It is now so obviously a serious humanitarian issue, yet the Australian and Indonesian governments are simply turning a blind eye"
THE WIZARD DOWN UNDER
Tara Hack's song has been widely acclaimed as a classic, and is particularly apt in this situation as it confronts Kevin Rudd head on. Accusing former Prime Minister John Howard of political cowardice, it directly challenges Mr Rudd, with extremely powerful lyrics "Now I'm off to see the wizard down under in Oz, Kevin Michael Rudd yeah, Schapelle's behind bars..." with a direct reminder of his accute responsibility to save her life "Now it's all up to you".
Music critics have also acclaimed the track, with one European based journalist declaring: "This really is a classic protest song, with clever poetry, and a direct message. It is also courageous, naming and shaming politicians with honesty and lyrical dexterity. Schapelle Corby's haunting cry at the end is a genuine shock, but it re-enforces the reality of what the song is all about. It is destined to be huge, particularly in the United States and Europe".
The video for the song provides a graphic backdrop for the story. This can be viewed directly on the Tara Hack page at 'Artists for Schapelle':
https://www.artistsforschapelle.com/tarahack.html
The MP3 download is provided free of charge on the same website.
For more information on Schapelle Corby, and in particular, her grave condition, see:
https://www.schapellecorby.org
