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Women's
Film Festival and 16 Days of Activism - Women's Watch 13/08
Veritas
November 21, 2008
International
Images Film Festival for Women 2008
This feast of
films about the lives of women runs from Friday 21 to Saturday 29
November in Harare. The opening ceremony included the US entry titled
Iron Ladies of Liberia which takes a unique look behind the scenes
at the rebirth of a nation and democracy in action, under the steady
hand of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who was inaugurated President in
January 2006 [she is the first women to be elected President of
an African country]. When she took office after nearly two decades
of brutal civil war, the water supply, electricity and sewerage
systems had ceased to function and corruption was rampant. The country
had inherited a huge debt, but she nevertheless has used her power
of position to help her people and move her country forward. President
Johnson Sirleaf appointed women to key positions throughout the
government [including a woman as Chief of Police and a woman as
Finance Minister]. The film, through the eyes of a young woman journalist,
follows the President's first year in office as she dealt
with rioting retired soldiers, workers' strikes, a plot to
remove her and cleaning up the streets, and as she fought corruption,
struggled to raise loans for development and made the risky decision
to bring back ex-President Charles Taylor for trial. It shows her
wonderful ability to listen and learn from people, her courage in
the face of very real danger, her stamina and her humility. It is
an inspirational film and a must-see. It is showing again at the
Gallery Delta, Monday 24th at 5.30pm and at COS Harare Gardens,
Saturday 29th at 3pm.
The Festival
entries feature the lives of ordinary and extraordinary women and
include films from a variety of countries and regions of the world,
from known and new directors, from full-length feature films to
shorts, from fiction to documentaries. Many of the short films and
documentaries were made under the auspices of Zimbabwe International
Film Festival and the Women Film Makers of Zimbabwe [WFOZ] Some
of the films will be shown in Bulawayo the week after the festival
in Harare and Amakhosi Bulawayo will be hosting a Discussion for
Film Practitioners on Saturday 6th December.
Another film
for those wanting inspiration in these difficult times is Taking
Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai. The work of this Kenyan woman
Nobel Peace Prize winner helped to reclaim her country's land
from a century of deforestation, while providing new sources of
livelihood to rural communities and giving disadvantaged women the
tools to participate for the first time in political processes.
It is a compelling story of a woman's personal journey through
the turbulent political and environmental history of Kenya, often
facing brutal retaliation from government agencies. It is showing
at COS Harare Gardens, Tuesday 25th at 3pm and at the Gallery Delta
on Saturday 29th Monday 24th at 5.30pm.
The Festival
Programme is available at the Elite 100 cinema in Avondale or by
email from: tsitsi@earth.co.zw
or phone WFOZ landline +263 (04) 862355.
16 Days
of Activism against Gender Violence - November 25 to December 10
The 16 Days
of Activism against Gender Violence is an international campaign
originating in 1991. The 16 days start on November 25 [International
Day against Violence Against Women] and end on December 10 [International
Human Rights Day], in order to symbolically link violence against
women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a
violation of human rights. This 16-day period also highlights other
significant dates including November 29 [International Women Human
Rights Defenders Day] and December 1 [World AIDS Day].
The 16 Days
Campaign has been used as an organizing strategy by individuals
and groups around the world to call for the elimination of all forms
of violence against women by:
- raising awareness
about gender-based violence as a human rights issue at the local,
national, regional and international levels
- strengthening
local work around violence against women
- establishing
a clear link between local and international work to end violence
against women
- providing
a forum in which organizers can develop and share new and effective
strategies
- demonstrating
the solidarity of women around the world organizing against violence
against women
- creating
tools to pressure governments to implement promises made to eliminate
violence against women
Every year,
the Centre for Women's Global Leadership decides on a campaign
theme in consultation with women's human rights advocates worldwide.
This year the global campaign theme is Human Rights for Women —
Human Rights for All: UDHR60 [Universal Declaration of Human Rights
60th Anniversary]
16 -
365 Days Activism against Gender Violence in Zimbabwe
Extending the
global theme, Zimbabwe chose "Women's Rights Are Human
Rights, With Peace We Overcome Violations against Human Rights"
as the national theme for 2008. Zimbabwe also took the decision
to spread the 16 Days of Activism over 365 Days with activities
taking place throughout the year. The aim is to make activism against
gender-based violence a year-round process. This year many organizations
decided it would be better to commemorate 16 Days in their constituencies
and communities, to ensure that there is maximum impact on the ground.
Also, the political environment, transport difficulties and fiscal
constraints were felt to make the organization of large national
events problematic.
The programme
of activities has not yet been made available, but here are a few
highlights provided by the coordinator - the Gender Forum
facilitated by UNIFEM.
November
25 - December 10 in Bulawayo. Film screenings, festivals
and workshops. Community Action for Development. Contact: Gertrude
Pswarayi: cad_communication@yahoo.com
November
26 - 27 in Mutoko - workshop on digital storytelling. The
community members will tell stories which highlight issues of people
living positively with HIV and AIDS, domestic violence and the culture
and traditions of the people in Mutoko as told by Chief Mutoko.
The narrations, drama and songs will be recorded on film and put
on CD. EKOWISA.
Contact: Tsitsi Mhlanga on +263 912 942395
November
28 in Gwanda - Domestic Violence Gala in conjunction with
the Ministry of Womens Affairs, Development and Gender. WLSA.
November
29 in Harare - Women artists of Zimbabwe '16 Days Concert',
will feature an exciting line-up of established and emerging singers,
musicians, poets and dancers, at The Book Café & Mannenberg
Jazz Club, from 2-7pm. Theirs is a strong message against violence
and for peace and respect for human rights. Pamberi Trust and FLAME
(Female Literary, Arts, Music & Enterprise). Contact: Penny
Yon: pamberit@gmail.com
December
3 - 5 in Makoni District - Set up of satellite centres
on domestic violence in conjunction with trained peer educators.
WLSA.
December
4 in Harare Gardens - Launch of booklet and a music CD
documenting the stories of survivors of violence and trauma who
have talked about their experiences as part of their healing process.
Musasa Project.
December
9 - 12 in Chinhoyi - Inter-linkages between Culture, Gender
Based Violence, HIV and AIDS and Disability Rights. Disabled
Women Support Organization.
Join
the 16 Days International E- Discussion!
You are invited
to join the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence electronic
discussion taking place in the form of a listserve [i.e. only those
who register their address on the list can participate]. Topics
will include: how groups are raising awareness about gender-based
violence as a human rights issue, linking local and international
work, sharing and developing new and effective strategies, enhancing
solidarity of women around the world against violence against women,
and developing tools to pressure governments to implement promises
made to eliminate violence against women. If you are interested
in joining the discussion please contact Centre for Women's
Global Leadership at cwgl@igc.org.
Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.
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