U2 singer Bono has defended Madonna‘s attempts to adopt an African baby.
The frontman hit back at her critics and praised the 48-year-old for giving one-year-old David Banda a chance of a better life.
He said: “Madonna should be applauded for helping to take a child out of the worst poverty imaginable and giving him a better chance in life. Baby David is lucky to have been adopted by someone who can give him a chance of survival in this world and I don’t think it’s fair that people are criticising her.
“About 20 years ago when my wife Ali and I went to Africa, shortly after Live Aid, a man who quite clearly loved his child came up to us and begged us to take him.
“It is heartbreaking but he asked us to take his child home with us because he couldn’t feed him. This happens all the time in parts of Africa where unthinkable poverty means people simply can’t feed their children.”
Madonna was severly criticised for trying to adopt a baby in Malawi, and various human rights groups formed a coalition to block the adoption.
They argued that local law prevents foreign adoptions and the singer speeded up the process through her wealth.
Meanwhile, U2 bassist Adam Clayton has revealed how the band decided their final tracklisting for their forthcoming greatest hits ‘U218’, which is due out next Monday (November 20).
He told The Sun: “We basically looked at all the radio playlists from around the world and worked out which songs people seem to like best and put them on the CD.”
The band are set to head into the studio to work on a new album next year.