Bieber on Tacloban visit: It changed my life

MANILA, Philippines - US pop star Justin Bieber yesterday said on his Twitter account that his visit to the young victims of Supertyphoon Haiyan (local code name: Yolanda) in Tacloban, Leyte on Tuesday “changed my life” and called it “the most touching trip of my life.”

“Special show in the affected areas #pray4philippines. You’ve changed my life, thank you…,” he tweeted, posting an Instagram clip of his performance before encouraging others once again to give back.

A few weeks after Typhoon Haiyan struck, Bieber has been asking fans to help him support the victims. He launched a worldwide campaign to help those affected by the deadly storm.

“The moment I heard about the tragedy a few weeks back, I thought I can count on you guys to make a difference,’’ Bieber told his fans on Twitter.

Bieber arrived from Australia where he did a couple of shows and flew to Tacloban via a private jet. He called his visit to Tacloban as his “most important one of the tour.”

“About to go perform the last #believetour show. The real last one and the most important one of the tour. #GiveBackPhilippines,” the Baby crooner posted on Monday night.

Once he arrived in Tacloban, he took a quick walk around the school and checked a temporary learning space that was packed with about 300 children before moving to an outdoor stage to sing, according to Kate Donovan, a spokeswoman for UNICEF.

Bieber then proceeded to perform his hit songs Mistletoe, Holy Night and Baby. After his mini-concert, he distributed toys, shirts and books to the children. He also played basketball with the survivors and even hugged little kids who swarmed to him during his brief stay. He also posed gamely for pictures with his fans.

“Justin brought a lot of joy, hope and cheer to the hundreds of children who were there,’’ Angela Kearney, UNICEF’s emergency coordinator for Haiyan response, said in a statement.

Kearney said the money Bieber raises “will give some of the children who were caught in the path of Haiyan access to education, vaccinations, better nutrition, clean water and sanitation.”

While some online bashers called it a publicity stunt to “deodorize” his antics lately, Bieber’s good deed, nevertheless, earned him praises from Filipinos and endeared him more to his army of fans who call themselves Beliebers.

“He showed his soft side,” a fan said.

Bieber has been embroiled in different scandals, including smoking marijuana, illegal graffiti spray-painting and visiting a brothel in Brazil, among others. But Bieber’s good deed in Leyte has showed another part of Bieber — one who cares about others.

Lastly, he promised to continue helping the young victims of the typhoon. On his Twitter, he wrote: “If you guys make it trend I’m going to add the spray paint cans I used to make the #pray4philippines art to the #GiveBackPhilippines campaign.”

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera and Australian Foreign Minister Julia Bishop flew to Tacloban on Sunday to console survivors and pledge continuing aid.

Bieber is just among the many international celebrities moved by the tragedy. The late Paul Walker came from a fundraiser for his Reach Out World Wide foundation to benefit the typhoon victims before he met a vehicular accident. Grammy-winning singer Alicia Keys visited an air force base in Manila two weeks ago and distributed crayons and coloring books to children of families who arrived aboard mercy flights by the Philippine and U.S. military from the typhoon-ravaged provinces of Leyte and Samar. The R&B star was in Manila at the time for a concert.

—  With a report from AP