Three films which tackle the Palestinian people’s suffering from the Israeli occupation, will participate in the forthcoming Human Rights Watch International Film Festival which will be held in London during the period between March 21-28, according to the daily al Hayat.
The most prominent film of these is the French Simon Biton’s Citizen Bishara which will be screened on the same day which Bishara, an Arab Knesset member and leader of the Palestinian Democratic National Assembly Party, will appear before the Israeli courts. Bishara has been accused of releasing statements claimed to incite terrorism.
Through her film the director follows Bishara’s political statements in the Knesset, his election campaigns, and his views about citizenship and democracy in what looks like a portrait.
The Lebanese director Randa al Shahal Sabbagh will screen her film Suha: Surviving Hell, in which she takes her audience to south Lebanon to follow the diaries of the fighter Suha Bshara who is dubbed Bride of Lebanon. Suha attempted to assassinate General Anthony Lahad, Commander of South Lebanon Army, Israel’s stooge after she had been freed from al Khayyam Prison.
Israeli director Nurit Kedar chases in her film Lebanon Dream her star Samir Farhat whose story she used in her previous film Borders.
The event will also screen the British film Bethlehem Diary by Antonia Caccia, in which she depicts Christmas in Bethlehem, 2000. In this final year of the 20th Century, the town was expecting 5 million visitors to celebrate the end of the millennium, but the streets are deserted, the hotels are shut, and shops are empty. The Israeli army has closed off Bethlehem since the 2nd Intifada began the previous September. Areas of the town have been heavily shelled and ruins are everywhere. The film focuses on two Palestinian families and a human rights lawyer during this tumultuous period. We witness their lives amidst extraordinary events - through moments of despair, confusion and anger - and the ubiquitous presence of the Israeli army. The intimate, surreal, and humorous stories they tell help us to understand how violence and uncertainty affect both their public and private family lives.
Afghanistan will be represented in the festival by two films: War in the Country of Mujahideen by Fabrizio Lazariti and Gossibi Bito and the British film Silent Scream by Zap Chughtai. The first film discusses the Afghan woman’s issue and the sacrifices she faced during the years of war and under Taliban’s regime -- Albawaba.com
