Clooney visits Italy quake victims
Updated on 10 July 2009
Hollywood heart-throb George Clooney has visited earthquake victims on the sidelines of the G8.
The actor, who has a home near Lake Como in northern Italy, toured the earthquake-devastated town of L'Aquila as world leaders met just a few miles away.
Clooney listened to explanations from regional officials, met local people living in tent cities after their homes were destroyed, then inaugurated a local cinema.
He said celebrities could help by attracting attention to what had happened, adding: "There's a lot of cameras here and that helps. And I think, probably that's the reason that the G8 is here as well, is that we have to constantly keep attention because otherwise it gets out of the spotlight.
"It's the same issue I have in Darfur, we have had the same problem in New Orleans in my country. If you don't do it, they fall by the wayside and it takes years and years before they get back."
Thousands of people were evacuated after the April quake, which measured 6.3 on the Richter scale, and are still living in tents while work continues on making their homes safe.
On Thursday, demonstrators took to the street of L'Aquila to protest against the slow reconstruction of their town.
A group of women holding a banner reading 'The Last Ladies' marched through the town's streets shortly after US First Lady Michelle Obama led a group of G8 spouses through the devastated town.
A handful of protesters tied a banner reading 'Yes We Camp' to a tree near the summit venue, a play on US President Barack Obama's election campaign slogan 'Yes We Can'.
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