Human Rights Festival Brochure 2012

8th Jersey Amnesty International

Human Rights Festival

Jersey Arts Centre Box Office: 700444 www.artscentre.je www.amnesty.org.je

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5 - 10 November 2012

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Photographic Exhibition

Berni Gallery at Jersey Arts Centre Monday 5 November - Saturday 10 November

The Art of Getting By

Stuart Freedman Exhibition Preview and Festival Launch by: Stuart Freedman Monday 5 November 5.30pm - 7pm Using the French word débrouillardise – the art of getting by – as a motif for his work, Stuart Freedman’s reportage photography shows people touched by war and poverty, living as best they can. These are photographs of what he has tried to see – sometimes forced himself to see – to remember that the world is not dark, dangerous and other, but that it is beautiful and full of life.

These images reflect the everyday struggles of common people. They are not an outsider’s rosy depiction of poverty nor do they patronise.

They are small stories from larger narratives and by and large show small lives.

They are no less important for that.

Stuart has worked consistently in the Developing World for most of his career. That was a choice made from the low horizons of his own childhood and the desire to escape the grey landscape of a Hackney past. He consciously sought difference but found similarity and common ground.

“Why shouldn’t the poor, the maimed, the brutalised, somehow steal a smile, fall in love?

A determination to live. To be normal. To be just like us.” – Stuart Freedman

Narcisse, who is HIV positive, prays with his family at dawn before they start work in the fields.

Kibileze, Rwanda

Into The Abyss: A Tale of Death, A Tale of Life Monday 5 November 8pm

USA | UK | Germany 2011 / 106 mins / Cert: 12A Director: Werner Herzog Speaker: Ciarnan Helferty, Chair of AI UK £6 (£5 students) / Jersey Arts Centre Members: £5.10 (£4.25 students) The film profiles Michael Perry, a man on death row convicted of murdering Sandra Stotler, a fifty-year-old nurse. He was suspected, but never charged, of two other murders which occurred in Conroe, Texas, with his accomplice Jason Burkett. Perry denies that he was responsible for the killings, blaming Burkett (also appearing in the film) who was convicted of the other two murders. Burkett, who received a lesser life sentence for his involvement, likewise blames Perry.

Perry's final interviews for the film were recorded only eight days before his execution on 1 July 2010.

Unravelling the crime and trial from separate viewpoints, including those of the victims’ families and prison staff, Herzog’s masterful exploration of life on Death Row shows devastating effects of capital punishment on all involved.

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty believing it to be a violation of two fundamental human rights: the right to life and the right not to be tortured or subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment.

WERNER HERZOG, born on 5 September 1942, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.

Often considered one of the greatest figures of New German Cinema, his films often feature heroes with impossible dreams, people with unique talents in obscure fields, or individuals who find themselves in conflict with nature. French filmmaker François Truffaut once called Herzog "the most important film director alive".

CIARNAN HELFERTY (Chair of AI UK) has been an Amnesty member since 2001, a member of the Foyle Local Group and significant contributer to Amnesty's Youth and Student movement. Ciarnan has Chaired the Queen's University Belfast Student Group and the STAN. He represented the Section at the 2007 ICM and is committed to empowering younger Amnesty members to campaign for change.

Putin’s Kiss Tuesday 6 November 8pm

Denmark | Russia 2011 / 85 mins Director: Lise Birk Pedersen Speaker: Alisa Lockwood £6 (£5 students) / Jersey Arts Centre Members: £5.10 (£4.25 students)

Presenting a chilling view of modern Russia and its fragile democracy, it follows 16-year-old Masha Drokova, a rising star in Russia’s popular nationalistic youth movement, Nashi. She's a smart, ambitious teenager who embraces Vladimir Putin and his promise of a greater Russia, and her dedication as an organiser is rewarded with a university scholarship, an apartment, and a job as a spokesperson. But her bright political future falters when she befriends a group of liberal journalists who are critical of the government; she’s forced to confront the group’s dirty — even violent— tactics.

It won the World Cinema Cinematography Award in Documentary at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.

ALISA LOCKWOOD is Head of Eurasia Forecasting at London-based political risk consultancy, Exclusive Analysis. Alisa manages a regional intelligence team of in-country analysts and sources. She specialises in Russia’s strategic outlook, natural resources in central Asia, and regulatory and trade risks in Ukraine and Baltic states.

Following the March 2012 elections in Russia, she authored an in-depth report on prospects of the Putin presidency. Alisa received an MA in Politics and Public Policy from the University of Toronto and also spent a year in Moscow on the prestigious Alfa Fellowship Programme between 2010-2011.

H2Oil Wednesday 7 November 8pm

Canada 2009 / 76 mins Director: Shannon Walsh Speaker: Dr Tim du Feu £6 (£5 students) / Jersey Arts Centre Members: £5.10 (£4.25 students) H2Oil follows a voyage of discovery, heartbreak and politicisation, weaving together a collection of compelling stories of people who are at the front line of attempting to defend water in Alberta against tar sands expansion. Unlikely alliances are built and lives are changed as they come up against the largest industrial project in human history.

This documentary traces the wavering balance between the urgent need to protect and preserve fresh water resources and the mad clamouring to fill the global demand for oil. Ultimately the film asks what is more important, oil or water? And what will be our response? With hope and courage H2Oil tells the story of one of the most significant and destructive projects of our time.

Dr Tim Du Feu is both an Environmental Protection Officer and active within Amnesty. He will be leading a post-film discussion, which will include a Canadian with first-hand experience of the health and environmental consequences of the tar sands extraction.

In recent years, Amnesty International has campaigned to raise awareness of the plight of indigenous communities such as that of the Lubicon Cree of Little Buffalo, Alberta.

The Lubicon Cree have been battling for three decades for the right to control their lands and hold to account the oil, gas and logging companies that have devastated their environment and destroyed their traditional way of life.

SHANNON WALSH is a Montreal-based filmmaker and writer. Her first feature documentary, H2Oil, traced the human and environmental costs of Alberta's oil sands. Her films have been released theatrically in Canada and the UK, broadcast nationally and internationally, and screened at festivals around the world. She has been the recipient of numerous awards, fellowships and prizes.

This is Not a Film

Thursday 8 November 8pm

Iran 2011 / 75 mins Directors: Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Jafar Panahi Speaker: Maryam Namazie £6 (£5 students) / Jersey Arts Centre Members: £5.10 (£4.25 students)

An Iranian film that documents one day in the life of Jafar Panahi, who is under house arrest and awaiting the result of his appeal of a six year prison sentence and twenty year ban on film-making, leaving the country or giving media interviews for "propaganda against the regime".

The film was smuggled from Iran to Cannes in a Flash-Drive hidden inside a birthday cake. It was specially screened at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.

MARYAM NAMAZIE is an Iranian-born campaigner, commentator and broadcaster. She is the spokesperson for Equal Rights Now – promoting an end to discrimination against women in Iran, the One Law for All Campaign against Sharia Law in Britain and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain. She works closely with Iran Solidarity, which she founded, and the International Committee Against Stoning.

She has spoken at numerous conferences and written many articles on women's rights issues, violence against women, political Islam, and secularism.

A Small Act Friday 9 November 8pm

USA 2010 / 88 mins Director: Jennifer Arnold Speaker: a local speaker £6 (£5 students) Jersey Arts Centre Members: £5.10 (£4.25 students) When Hilde Back, from Sweden, sponsored a young, rural Kenyan student, she thought nothing of it.

She certainly never expected to hear from him, but years later she did. Now a Harvard graduate and a Human Rights Lawyer for the United Nations, Chris Mburu decided to find the stranger that changed his life. Inspired by her generosity, he started a scholarship program of his own and named it after his former benefactor.

JENNIFER ARNOLD graduated from UCLA and University of Nairobi with a B.A. in African History and returned to UCLA for a MFA in Film. After success at Sundance with Maid of Honor (HBO / Cinemax / Film4) and her Internet series The Mullet Cronicles (Palm Pictures / Lionsgate), Jennifer shot A Small Act, her first feature documentary, in a Kenyan village where she didn't even speak the language.

Tavaziva Dance: Sensual Africa A celebration of dance to conclude the 8th Jersey Amnesty International Human Rights Festival

Saturday 10 November 8pm

£17 (£11 students) Jersey Arts Centre Members: £14.45 (£9.35 students) Tavaziva Dance, set up in 2004 by Zimbabwean-born Founder and Artistic Director, Bawren Tavaziva, is a national touring company that presents cutting-edge new work representing the diversity of Black British Dance. The company specialises in fusing African and contemporary dance, creating a unique dance style that is both contemporary and rooted in African cultures.

Voyage with Tavaziva Dance as they salute and pay homage to the fascinating Tumbuka and Chewa Tribes from Milawi. Be seduced as they inject their own interpretation on the complexities of these intriguing tribes’ movements and music and the distinctiveness of the rituals that boys and girls go through to become men and women. Suitable for 12 years +

Showing in the Berni Gallery at Jersey Arts Centre

Monday 5 November - Saturday 10 November

Filmed by Richard Wainwright, this documentary film focuses on a campaign about rights for Indigenous Peoples. It was first shot in Beswick, a remote community in the Northern Territories of Australia, and then in the Bolivian Amazon where Richard journied with two aboriginal men, Scott and Major, to meet with this other indigenous community.

Richard is an award-winning photojournalist based in Perth, Western Australia. With over 10 years professional experience, Richard is highly capable of utilising his extensive experience in news, features, portraiture and photojournalism to fulfil any clients brief.

Since gaining a degree in Documentary Photography at UWCN, he has been reporting on news and humanitarian issues for international aid agencies around the world, documenting their activities, writing stories and producing multimedia packages.

Originally from Jersey, he was a senior staff photographer with the Jersey Evening Post for eight years, as well as being a contributing photographer for Corbis picture agency. His work has been widely published and has resulted in numerous awards and exhibitions in Australia, London and Jersey.

Education Programme Some recent news items: Gambia: President Jammeh has vowed to kill all death row inmates by mid-September.

Canada: Government has cut diplomatic ties with Iran over support for Syria and alleged human rights abuses.

Afghanistan: Attack on female actors leaves survivors facing more ‘punishment’. Killing and death threats reveal depth of Afghan society’s prejudices against women.

Syria: Aleppo – civilians and water supplies hit. Nowhere left to shelter. Schools, hospitals, homes – places of safety destroyed by air strikes.

Chad: New report reveals horror of detention conditions.

Faced with news which so often reveals man’s inhumanity towards others, how can we respond?

Amnesty believes that supporting young people in learning about human rights and global issues is a vital part of its work. Gaining knowledge of what is happening in different countries and how human rights are affected can lead to greater awareness of, and respect for, human rights.

Current Amnesty campaigns are particularly focussing on women’s rights and poverty and human rights, themes which feature in this year’s Festival.

Photo by Stuart Freedman: A mentally ill man kisses his wife who visits him in the secure ward at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, Delhi, India. The department of Psychiatry is led by Dr Nimesh Desai, who leads a revolutionary street clinic for the mentally ill homeless. He is licensed to administer anti-psychotic drugs on the street, but those patients that require hospitalisation come to this clinic.

Education Programme continued...

The education programme offered last year was well received. Over 700 Island students found out about human trafficking and migration. This year’s five day education programme will give further opportunities to students to learn about a variety of human rights and global issues. Photojournalist Stuart Freedman will give presentations to students both in schools and at Jersey Arts Centre, based on his experience of human rights issues in a range of countries. In addition, films and speakers are being provided for a number of ‘human rights days’.

From Canada to Kenya, from Russia to the USA, the chosen films give a clear picture of the threats to human rights posed by exploitation of the environment, denial of freedom of expression and the persisting use of the death penalty.

But there is hope...

Can one small act dramatically change the course of another’s life? In what ways do small deeds undertaken by individuals ripple out to affect other’s lives? These are some of the questions which students will be challenged to consider.

In 1948 when the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted, Eleanor Roosevelt stated: “Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home, so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world.”

We hope that young people will support this year’s Festival by visiting Stuart Freedman’s photographic exhibition in the Berni Gallery and coming to see the films at Jersey Arts Centre.

Photo by Stuart Freedman: Teacher Potamienne Komezusenge (37) plays with her youngest child. She contracted HIV from her husband who died of the diesase and is buried in the back garden under a wooden cross. She says "As long as I feel strong, I feel OK emotionally... sometimes there is stigma here... but the biggest problem is money". Kibileze, Rwanda

Photo by Stuart Freedman: Patti Das, a rag-picker, plays with his son Khrisha on a piece of waste ground that is their home next to a rail line beneath a flyover near Okhla station, New Delhi, India

Festival Committee SAM LOSH Chair

GEORGINA NOEL Secretary

ANTONIA CARATSIS Treasurer

MIRIAM MORRISON

Education Coordinator

MICHELLE PARKER

Marketing and Publicity

TOM BROSSMAN I.T. / Technical

GILLIAN BUNTING

Volunteers Coordinator

ROHINI GANGARAMANI Volunteers Coordinator

DANIEL AUSTIN

Jersey Arts Centre Liaison