Human Rights Film Festival
April 2005

Film Programme and Summaries

Thursday 7 April

FILM FESTIVAL OPENING

7.00 - 7.30 p.m.

South Africa and the Anti-Apartheid Struggle

7.30 - 8.45 p.m.

Born into Struggle South Africa (2004) 74 minutes
Directors: Rehad Desai

Filmmaker Rehad Desai takes us on an intimate journey mapped out by the scars etched into his family's life from having a father who was intensely involved in politics. Barney Desai was a political hero during South Africa's struggle, yet as a father he was damagingly absent emotionally. Rehad spent most of his young life in exile and became politically active himself. On this intensely personal journey into his past, Rehad realises he may be following in his father's footsteps as he reviews his relationship with his own estranged teenage son.

Audience Award Winner - 6th Encounters South African International Film Festival
Jury Prize Best Documentary - Apollo Film Festival
Jury Prize Best Documentary - Cape Town World Cinema Film Festival

Saturday 9 April

Islam and Human Rights

11.00 - 11.55 a.m.

Nazrah: A Muslim Woman's Perspective USA (2003) 55 minutes
Director: Farah Nousheen

This is an intimate look at a diverse group of Muslim women living in the USA. The women discuss their views on Islam, current political events and how they reflect on the image of Islam in the West. The women also discuss the difficulty of achieving equality within the Muslim community while fighting stereotypical portrayals of Muslim women in the US media. 'Nazrah' is the Arabic word for "perspective".

Winner - Best Film Producer 2003, National Association of Muslim Women

2.00 - 3.30 p.m.

Rana's Wedding Palestine (2002) 90 minutes
Director: Hany Abu-Assad

Shooting on location in East Jerusalem, Ramallah and at checkpoints in-between, Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad sees the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through the eyes of a young woman who, with only ten hours to marry, must negotiate her way around roadblocks, soldiers, stone-throwers, overworked officials .. and into the heart of an elusive lover. According to Abu-Assad "When the abnormalities of barriers and occupation become an everyday reality, normal things like love and marriage turn into fiction. This is life in Palestine right now. I wanted to challenge it through cinema".

Winner - the Best Actress award at the 2002 Marrakesh International Film Festival
Winner - the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival' Nestor Almendros Prize for courage in filmmaking

5.30 - 6.45 p.m.

The Letter: An American Town and the "Somali Invasion" (2003) 76 minutes
Director: Ziad H. Hamzeh

This film explores what American news outlets have dubbed the "Somali Invasion" of Lewiston, Maine - an insulated, predominantly white former mill town struggling to maintain its equilibrium in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy. Controversy erupts when Mayor Larry Raymond sends an open letter to the 1 100 newly arrived Somali refugees informing them that the city's resources are strained to the limit and asking them to tell other Somalis not to move to their city. This leads to a cross-current of emotions culminating in an anti-immigrant rally and a counter demonstration involving 4000 Lewiston residents supporting ethnic and cultural diversity.

Sunday 10 April

Gay and Lesbian Rights

3.00 - 3.25 p.m.

My Son the Bride South Africa (2001) 24 minutes
Director: Mpumi Njinge

Hompi and Charles are two men who want to marry each other. The film is a tribute to the South African Constitution which outlaws discrimination, also in terms of sexual orientation. The film shows that however liberal the Constitution, prejudices are not easily overcome, especially when family is involved.

3.45 - 4.50 p.m.

Saints + Sinners USA (2004) 71 minutes
Director: Abigail Honor

Edward DeBonis and Vincent Maniscalco decide to get married. However, unlike many other gay couples who formalise their relationships in a domestic union, Vincent and Edward, both devout Catholics, want to have the "Holy Sacrament of Marriage". Edward grew up as an alter boy and Vincent attends Sunday Mass regularly. The film explores the social, political and religious aspects of same-sex marriage and examines its effects on American society.

Globalisation - militarization of India and US Foreign Policy

5.30 - 7.45 p.m.

War and Peace India (2002) 136 minutes
Director: Anand Patwardhan

This was filmed over three years in India, Pakistan, Japan and the United States after the 1998 nuclear tests on the Indian sub-continent. In six parts, the film is framed by the murder of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. Director Anand Patwardhan examines India's trajectory towards naked militarism with sorrow while capturing joyful stories of courage and resistance. The film also analyses the human cost extracted from Indian citizens in the name of "national security". Scientific research has been hijacked by the war machine with only a handful of practitioners to remind us of its potential to fulfil the genuine needs of the people. The unofficial doctrine of "Might Makes Right" is under scrutiny.

Attempts by the Government of India, to order 21 cuts in this anti-war, anti-nuclear documentary film, were rejected by the Bombay High Court in April 2003. These included where mention was made of or scenes showing 'the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi by Nathuram Godse, all mention of the Tehelka arms scandal, all statements made by Dalits and all speeches by political leaders'.

International Film Critics Award (FIPRESCI), 2002 Sydney International Film Festival
Grand Prize, 2002 Earth Vision Film Festival (Tokyo)
Best Film and International Jury Prize, 2002 Mumbai International Film Festival
Best Documentary - Karachi International Film Festival 2003
Best Non-Fiction - National Film Awards, India 2004

Monday 11 April

The Girl-Child

7.00 - 7.50 p.m.

Orphans and HIV/AIDS

Nikiwe South Africa (2004) 52 minutes
Director: Ingrid Gavshon

15 year old Nikiwe has to take care of her brothers. Both their parents have died, supposedly from HIV/AIDS. The children do not have a birth certificate or any form of official identification. Without these, they are not eligible to get government support. They survive by begging, on assistance from neighbours, and at times starve. One NGO assists them from time to time.

8.15 - 9.45 p.m.

Female Genital Mutilation

The Day I Will Never Forget UK (2002) 92 minutes
Director: Kim Longinotto

The film examines the varied social and cultural dynamics in relation to female genital mutilation (FGM) also referred to as clitoridectomy or female circumcision. The film is set in the Somali community of Nairobi, Kenya, where female genital mutilation is still very common. 'A Western-trained nurse confronts a new husband with his wife's need for corrective surgery, only to see him put his fear of being shamed by his friends before his wife's well-being. A men's fraternity leader, wearing traditional dress, claims that the clitoris is no different from the foreskin and therefore must be removed. Middle-class mothers sit … rationalizing their own suffering and justifying why they have passed the practice onto their daughters.' Jennine Lanouette, San Francisco Film Festival. Sixteen girls make the difficult decision to take their parents to court, a landmark case which will change the social history of their country. These are African girls and women we might not normally hear about, but they are true heroes who are transforming the world.

Amnesty DOEN Award for 'Best Documentary', IDFA Netherlands
Best International Documentary, TURSAK, Film Festival, Istanbul, Turkey
Humanitarian Award for Outstanding Documentary, Hong Kong International
Winner One World Media Awards 2004: 'Women in Society Award'

Tuesday 12 April

Governance in Southern Africa

7.00 - 7.50 p.m.

Zimbabwe: Countdown (2003) 52 minutes
Director: Michael Raeburn

The documentary is a personal reflection of the situation of Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe. Filmmaker Michael Raeburn, a Rhodesian, was expelled from his country for writing a book supporting Mugabe's socialist vision of the future. The film details how the liberation movement which Michael Raeburn once admired, has been transformed into a reign of terror. The optimism of liberation has turned to despair with rage, riots, killing and starvation rampant throughout the land. Michael Raeburn has been forced into exile a second time, because of the colour of his skin.

First Prize - African Film Festival of Milan 2003

8.00 - 8.30 p.m.

Looting the Nation South Africa / Mozambique (2004) 31 minutes
Directors: Rehad Desai and Anita Khanna

In November 2000, Mozambican journalist Carlos Cardoso was gunned down in his car by hired hit men. Nine months later, Antonio Siba Siba Macuacua, a senior banker, was strangled and thrown thirteen flights down a central stairwell. What links these murders is an investigation into bank fraud which went right to the top of society. In a film which shines a cynical light on the IMF and World Bank in their insistence on privatisation at any cost, Looting the Nation's anti-globalisation thrust supports the brave and dangerous attempts of the anti-corruption lobby to clean up Mozambique's act.

Wednesday 13 April

The Death Penalty and the criminal justice system

7.00 -8.30 p.m.

Deadline USA (2003) 93 minutes
Directors: Katy Chevigny and Kirsten Johnson

For twenty years Governor George Ryan of Illinois was a tough-on-crime, pro-death penalty Republican. However, shortly after he became governor, a group of journalism students at Northwestern University discovered important evidence which proved death row inmate Anthony Porter to be innocent and wrongly convicted. Their revelation came a few hours before his execution. Two more wrongful convictions were discovered shortly thereafter. Reporters from The Chicago Tribune unearthed alarming evidence suggesting that there could be no absolute guarantee that the Illinois criminal justice system has not, nor would ever, execute an innocent person. Deeply disturbed, the Governor set us special clemency hearings for each person on death row. Each inmate's lawyer was given half and hour to make a case for his or her client's life and each prosecutor was allotted the same time to prove the need for the inmate's execution. Following this he pardoned four men. He was unwilling to uphold a system he found to be fraught with error. On the next day, he granted blanket clemency to the remaining 167 death row inmates - an unprecedented move for a US Governor.

Quote from the BBC: 'The (2005) US Supreme Court's decision to prevent youths from being put to death for crimes they commit before they turn 18 is part of a trend towards limiting the use of the death penalty in the US'.

Thursday 14 April

Right to Culture

7.00 - 8.00 p.m.

Meaning of the Buffalo South Africa (2004) 61 minutes
Director: Karin Slater

A wildlife filmmaker is sent on assignment to a remote village in South Africa to make a documentary about the meaning of the buffalo. The community living in Lekgophung, together explore the meaning of the buffalo. The role of the elderly as the link between the past and the present is contrasted with the view of youth who do not believe in the buffalo totem idea.

8.15 - 8.40 p.m.

Death of a Bushman South Africa (2004) 26 minutes
Director: Richard Wicksteed

This tells the uncomfortable story of Optel Rooi, who was shot in the back by police. Yet up until the time the film was made, there had been no arrests made. Optel was one of the few remaining traditionalists in the diminishing San community. Members of the community, wracked by displacement, poverty and alcoholism, tell of their experiences of marginalisation and racism against the backdrop of police brutality.

NOTE: In 2004, there was a Human Rights Commission Hearing relating to the killing of Optel Rooi, as a direct result of this documentary. Two police officers were suspended and prosecution is pending.

One of three (3) Best Special Assignments of 2004.

8.40 - 9.30 p.m.

Trancing in Dreamtime South Africa (2004) 50 minutes
Director: Junaid Ahmed

The film documents the 'historic meeting of a group of Aboriginal musicians with the Giraffe Group of San musicians and dancers from Botswana'. The Naro Giraffe Group perform at schools, do story-telling, bow shooting and play games in Botswana. Music is the medium through which they are able to transcend the language barrier and express their cultures to one another'. Samora Chapman.

Friday 15 April

Democracy and revolution through law in South Africa

7.00 - 7.50 p.m.

Law and Freedom South Africa (2005) 96 minutes (two parts)
Director: Zackie Achmat

Part 1, Who Was Mrs Khomani, relates the dramatically charged cases which led to the abolition of the death penalty and the decriminalisation of sodomy, a ruling which acknowledges the equality of gay and lesbian people. The 1980 case in the title led to the collapse of the hated Pass laws in South Africa.

8.00 - 8.50 p.m.

Part 2, It's a Nice Country!, introduces courageous women and men who have used the legal space provided by the Constitution in a post-apartheid South Africa, to build democracy and a better life for all. Irene Grootboom's struggle for housing culminated in a landmark ruling of the Constitutional Court which is seen as crucial for the establishment of greater socio-economic rights. We meet the Maltafas who, even in the new democratic order, had to challenge abuse of power when their grants were unlawfully withdrawn. This film also explores the case of the Treatment Action Campaign's battle for the use of antiretrovirals to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.