2015 Winners & Shortlists

RAISE SHAWWA'S VOICE

Short List
BrandKAFA
Product/ServiceDOMESTIC WORKERS ABUSE
EntrantRÉPUBLIQUE Beirut, LEBANON
CategoryUse of Digital Media (Including Mobile Devices)
Entrant Company RÉPUBLIQUE Beirut, LEBANON
Advertising Agency RÉPUBLIQUE Beirut, LEBANON

Results and Effectiveness

Our aim was to raise Shawwa's voice to be loud enough to expose the atrocities domestic workers experience in Lebanon. In the first 6 days, Shawwa's voice was shared/heard by 18,000, sparking a debate across social media, revealing the real, and some unexpected, underlying issues that needed to be examined in order to find real solutions. As of today, laws are yet to be changed, but in the wake of Shawwa, other domestic workers have spoken louder, as can be seen in the newly formed labor union.

Creative Execution

The website invited viewers to listen to Shawwa's message, but in order to hear or, or rather "raise her voice", they had to share the site on their social media platforms. Once shared, viewers were able to hear Shawwa speak. At any given moment, Shawwa's volume was based on how many people were sharing at that moment. When shares rose, her voice rose with them - if they dropped, so did her voice. Each share became a free media placement on the thousands of newsfeeds across the world - raising Shawwa's voice beyond the borders of Lebanon. On TV, a film can be seen and forgotten, but online it can potentially live forever. By using the power of the internet, we were able to keep Shawwa's voice alive for as long as people wanted to hear it.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

Raise Shawwa's Voice is a campaign to spread awareness on the abuse suffered by domestic workers in Lebanon and in turn the rising suicide rate and unnatural deaths amongst them due to the abuse. The campaign's main message was to demand serious investigation into these deaths, in order to combat the source of the problem. KAFA have a strong following in Lebanon due to their ongoing social efforts, but the campaign targeted a large number of Lebanese who are still unaware of the constant abuse suffered by domestic workers in the country. In Lebanon, many might be vaguely aware of how domestic workers suffer in Lebanon, but still don't know the real facts. This insight paved the way for us to create a campaign that reveal to the Lebanese the truth about what's happening in Lebanon and get them to speak out on the behalf of the domestic worker's cause.

Credits

Name Company Role
Fadi Mroue République Creative Director
Yasmin Murad République Creative Director
Sami Kiwan Republique Digital Art Director
Bernard Khalil Bernard Khalil Productions Director
Emile Harb Codefish Project Manager
Ayman Serhan Codefish Project Manager