From the Directors
HUMAN RIGHTS IN A CHANGING WORLD
In 2008 we marked the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration Human Rights by asking whether the language of human rights was still relevant – after all, the world we are living in today is quite different to that of 1948. The answer to that question was unequivocally ‘yes’ based on the number of you who came to the festival.
This year, the festival is taking place in a period of heightened uncertainty and change. Many of us are experiencing personal anxiety as we consider the security of our jobs and homes. As we look to secure our personal wellbeing we may be faced with making difficult decisions that affect our every day rights and freedoms or the rights and freedoms of others. We will need to consider how we live, work, and spend our leisure time. It is also possible that we will reconsider how others live, work, and whether they even have leisure time.
When faced with decisions such as these, the temptation is to look to our own interests rather than the interests of the community we live in; human rights may be perceived as only for some deserving sectors of society, but not for those who are on the margins. And when times get tough, it is easy for human rights to be ignored or side-lined by politicians who claim they have to make “tough choices for the sake of our own safety, security and long term benefit”.
As we said in 2008, these rights and freedoms have been realised only after considerable time, perseverance, effort, bloody mindedness and struggle. Human rights promote the inherent dignity of the person. They are inalienable, indivisible and universal and we cannot pick and choose who is entitled to the benefits of these fundamental rights anymore than we can decide when these rights apply and in what circumstances. We must therefore, ensure these fundamental rights and freedoms are celebrated, kept alive and not eroded by the politics of pragmatism and expediency.
Today, more than ever, these rights and freedoms give us the opportunity to debate, discuss and shape the society we want to live in and want our children to live in. Do we want a society divided by self-interest or are we searching for something more?
The Human Rights Film Festival seeks to show that we have the ability and opportunity to work together to make our vision of a better society a reality and bring about meaningful change. There is an opportunity to promote a shared vision of a society where the dignity, rights and freedoms of others are valued so that we can live in a world that is environmentally and economically sustainable. Now seems to be a pretty good time to make that choice and that is our challenge to you. We have no illusions that this is a difficult path to choose but it is a path that other communities have been down before and we are not alone.
This year’s festival theme is ‘freedom’ and we are screening films that highlight the extent to which individuals and communities will go to exercise their freedoms and try and achieve change for the better. They are not always successful, but neither is that always the point. These films whilst recording their successes also bear witness to the struggles that have taken place and continue to take place.
Our line-up this year is particularly strong with high quality documentaries from around the globe, touching on a wide range of human rights issues. Most have won international recognition. We continue to bring you films with a New Zealand connection and encourage the film-makers to attend the festival and participate on the panels. We hope other New Zealand film-makers will be inspired to take up the challenge and explore human rights themes through the medium of film in the future.
On behalf of all the volunteers and sponsors who help put this festival together, the film makers and the individuals and communities who share with us their stories; thank you for your support and belief in a better world.
Boris van Beusekom and Carolyn Brown
Festival Directors