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Monday, December 22, 2008
Iranian Nobel Winner's Office Shut Down
The Associated Press reports that Iranian authorities shut down the office of a human rights group led by Nobel Peace Prize winnerShirin Ebadi on Sunday as the group was preparing to honor a political activist who spent 17 years in prison in the Islamic republic.
Learn more about Ebadi and her endeavors in the documentary SHIRIN EBADI, A SIMPLE LAWYER as it features an in-depth interview conducted in her Tehran office, speeches at numerous international conferences, and a visit to the children's center she founded.
Monks’ Protest of Chinese Rule in Tibet Ends in Violence
On March 10th, in Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, 50 Buddhist monks were arrested by police for organizing a peaceful protest against the religious restrictions applied by the Chinese government. Other protests took place the following days, but on March 14th, what started out as another demonstration in a market place ended in a deadly riot with shops getting ransacked, cars set on fire and at least 10 people killed, as reported by the New York Times. The causes of this violent outcome are still unclear, sources mention that police started beating up the monks thus enraging the Tibetan population, but Chinese authorities have dismissed these claims. This is the largest Tibetan protest against Chinese rule since 1989.
Luc Schaedler’s film, ANGRY MONK, examines the life and work of Gendun Choephel (1903-1951) a legendary figure in Tibet. Choephel was believed to be the reincarnation of a famous Buddhist lama but he eventually turned his back on monastic life and became a fierce critic of his country's religious conservatism, cultural isolationism and reactionary government.
As reported in the Washington Post, the digital revolution is helping to throw light into some of the world's darkest corners. Ordinary people going about their daily lives are now the first to document historic events. The photos at Abu Ghraib prison taken on soldiers' personal digital cameras, vacationers recorded the first images of the 2004 tsunami, London commuters provided cellphone photos used to investigate the July 2005 bombings on the transit system, and cellphone images were among the first glimpses of the recent coup in Thailand.
This development was first documented in our acclaimed release SEEING IS BELIEVING: Handicams, Human Rights and the News. Available on DVD with many bonus features including a Study Guide, this film crosses the world tracking media activists to look at what happens when regular people use camcorders to document what they see. What are the risks and responsibilities? What are the wider impacts on television, audiences, and society?
As reported on Yahoo News and elsewhere, production at Latin America's largest gold mine was at a standstill Tuesday amid mounting criticism from Peru's business sector over the government's refusal to remove farmers blockading the facility's access road. The farmers, meanwhile, insisted that their protest is over alleged depletion and pollution of water supplies and not because they want Yanacocha to provide them jobs, as the company maintains. Officials with the Yanacocha gold mine, majority owned by Denver-based Newmont Mining Corp., announced the shutdown late Monday, saying operations were impossible.
Our critically-acclaimed, award-winning film CHOROPAMPA: THE PRICE OF GOLD portrays the aftermath of a devastating mercury spill at Yanacocha that contaminated the village of Choropampa. The environmental catastrophe turned this quiet village into a hotbed of civil resistance.
Iran Bans Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi's Rights Group
As reported on Yahoo News and around the world, Iran has declared as "illegal" a human rights group headed by Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi and vowed to prosecute its continued activities. But Ebadi, quoting Iran's constitution, responded that her center did not require a permit.
The acclaimed documentary SHIRIN EBADI: A SIMPLE LAWYER is an in-depth profile of the groundbreaking attorney, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for her tireless fight for democracy and human rights, in particular the struggle for the rights of women and children.
As reported on CNN, James Crosby, the former head of Florida’s Department of Corrections (DOC) who was fired by Governor Jeb Bush in February after the string of scandals involving brutality, sex abuse, and corruption, has pleaded guilty to accepting over $100,000 in kickbacks. Our acclaimed film AMERICA'S BRUTAL PRISONS features stories about of Florida guards drenching inmates with burning pepper spray, kicking a prisoner to death, and testimony from a female guard who claims sexual assault and harassment by fellow guards. Crosby ran the prison in which the aforementioned man was kicked to death--after which he was promoted to run the entire DOC.
And, The Chicago Tribune reported that the infamous Burge Report was finally published. It stated that former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge led the torture of criminal suspects for two decades, coercing dozens of confessions with fists, kicks, radiator burns, guns to the mouth, bags over the head and electric shock to the genitals. Our film THE END OF THE NIGHTSTICK was an early investigation into these charges of institutional racism, torture and the cover-up, and also tells the story of a resistance movement, as local activist groups, including the Task Force to Confront Police Violence, refuse to let testimonies of police violence remain buried.
The Chicago Tribune reports that the Cook County Judge Paul Biebel Jr., who launched a probe into allegations of torture by former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge and officers under him, ruled Friday that a report prepared by special prosecutors should be made public. In the mid-'70s through early '80s the Chicago police used electroshock, oxygen deprivation, hanging on hooks, the bastinado and beatings of the testicles. The torturers were white, and their victims black or brown.
Our long-popular film THE END OF THE NIGHTSTICK investigates the torture, institutional racism, violence and cover-up. It also tells the story of a Chicago grassroots movement that refused to let testimonies of police violence remain buried.
Hundreds of legal noncitizens were swept up in the weeks after 9/11, held for months in a much-criticized federal detention center in Brooklyn as "persons of interest" to terror investigators, and then deported. This week, as reported in the New York Times, one of them is back in New York and another is due today - the first to return to the United States.
Set in a bare room that functions variously as interrogation room, prison cell and home, our acclaimed film PERSONS OF INTEREST consists of a series of intimate encounters with twelve detainees and family members, who share their stories. Video Librarian gave the film, " * * * * (4 out of 4 stars!) Editor's Choice! Highly Recommended! Sure to generate intense feelings of shame, revulsion, and sadness... while also sparking fruitful discussion."
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