International Human Rights Film Festival Albania

 

It is a great pleasure and honor to introduce the Fourth Edition of the International Human Rights Film Festival Albania (IHRFFA).  

      When this Festival began in 2006 it was far more modest. The simple intent was to assist in bringing the human rights message to a society that was evolving from its totalitarian past and was desirous to become a vital European state committed to the human rights principles found in the international instruments it agreed to.  

      In our conversations two colleagues, Kujtim Çashku and I, who had worked together since 1992 for the promotion of human rights in Albania, decided that the human rights message needed to be nurtured and revitalized. What better method than to bring films from all over the world to the attention of the Albanian people so that they would appreciate the human dilemmas that globally plague the pursuit of human dignity. Hence the IHRFFA was born. 

      The event today is far more ambitious than it was four years ago. With a wide selection of original and thought provoking films and the participation of filmmakers it has been brought to a professional standard comparable to other festivals shown around the world. It is no longer a simple dream of two human rights proponents, but it has become, supported by the Albanian human rights and international community, a major human rights film festival. Further, and perhaps more importantly, it is anxiously anticipated by an Albanian public thirsting to understand human rights through the media of film.  

      The IHRFFA’s impact and reputation goes beyond the Albanian borders. Last year’s edition was noted in a review in the important international journal, the Human Rights Quarterly, and was widely appreciated by human rights advocates who in reading the Festival selections choose films for their training and educational purposes from those presented in Tirana.

     These developments can have us conclude that the IHRFFA is clearly becoming an important and ongoing tradition for Albania in its transformation from a country closed to the world to a modern democracy continually seeking to improve its human rights commitment. Consequently the IHRFFA has been critical in letting the world know that the human rights message continues to be important for Albania and its people.  
 

      In last year’s remark I noted: 

      Film no less, and perhaps in some instances more, than the other art forms molds and shapes our thinking and brings about change that allows for the acceptance and realization of the human rights agenda. …The films {previously} shown reflected the global experience; that human rights concerns and violations are far from unique to one country and that every society must contend with human rights issues not necessarily peculiar to its own experiences. The chosen films poignantly demonstrated that the promise of the universality of human rights is a goal that requires continued vigilance and effort to insure that all peoples, in every generation, be afforded the rights and freedoms that are essential for the realization of their aspirations, dignity and fulfillment of their human potential.

        

       In my own human rights work I have been inspired by the lessons of the IHRFFA and have incorporated film, (some of which I first saw in Tirana), in my university lectures and human rights training. Just recently when presenting at a workshop for the prohibition of torture being held in Mumbai India, it was announced that “Slum Dog Millionaire” had won the ‘Best Picture’ at the Academy Awards. The Indians in attendance at the workshop took great pride that a movie focused on Mumbai had come to receive the accolades of the world.  I quickly noted that the world will now know that torture is a commonly used interrogation device and an accepted practice for the Indian police community. The message was clear. The workshop participants understood with clarity, having seen the torture of the protagonist on the screen, that the pride they felt for the movie was coupled with the shame that torture remains a human rights problem for India. My words, or for that matter the international instruments that India had ratified, were not sufficient to bring India in compliance with human rights norms. Film not only attacks our intellect, but brings the human message to the heart, or if you like, the soul, and convinces  via our human qualities, values and emotions,  to accept that  human rights must not be just spoken about but needs to be practiced.  

      This is the power of film. What the lawyer, the diplomat, the statesman tries to do via legal commitment to achieve the human rights goal is not sufficient to make the rhetoric a reality. Having the filmmaker attacking our perceptions and having us empathetically comprehend the importance of protecting our human dignity and that of others are potent weapons in the human rights arsenal.      

      Once again I wish to repeat part of the message I wrote for last year’s edition: 

      As we watch this year’s film choices, each reflecting an artistic quality that strikes at our emotional core as well as our intellect, we need to be mindful of the filmmakers’ messages. We need to take from them a richer, a more meaningful understanding of the human condition and the importance of human rights for all people. We must leave the theater more determined that the goal of human rights, the respect of human dignity, requires from us a commitment in practice that human rights is not an esoteric study, but a reality central to the protection of the core values of our civilization.  Through effective film portrayals our reality can be shaped and we can be further committed to the realization of the rights and freedoms that we hold dear. This is the intent and hope of this film festival and it organizers. Please join with me in saying thank you to those who have worked so hard to make this a reality. We are grateful that this effort can be taken freely in Albania, a country that knows firsthand the importance of freedom and human rights and thankful to those who are committed to make this event a reality.

      Let us appreciate these films as a further commitment to the importance of human rights and we will hopefully leave here convinced, more than ever, that the observance and the pursuit of the realization of human rights is the worthiest of goals.

 

         My hope is that this Fourth Edition is not the last, but will truly be an ongoing tradition so that new generations of Albanians will continue to understand via the art of filmmaking that human rights must be understood in order to be practiced. The goals of the sixty–one year old Universal Declaration of Human Rights require re-commitment if they are to be truly realized. The part the IHRFFA plays in accomplishing that end is far from insignificant, indeed, we should all feel pride that we are part of such in this annual event. Fortunately the existence of Academy of Film & Multimedia, MARUBI, the site of the Festival and an educational and professional institution committed to the education of the next generation of film makers, allows for such an endeavor to succeed. The people of Tirana can be proud that they are host to this event each year, making this capital a site where human rights are celebrated via the art of film making and where human rights are hopefully not violated.

 

 

                  Theodore S. Orlin – IHRFFA- Honorary President

                  Clark Professor of Human Rights Scholarship and Advocacy, Utica College, New York, USA

                  President- International Human Rights Education Consortium (IHREC)