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A film marathon on gender violence

Women's rights have come a long way since the first International Women’s Day in 1900. Early campaigners would be proud of the transformative role they played in opening an access to male-only professions, securing voting rights for women, and criminalising domestic violence and rape in Europe.

But, we cannot be complacent. There is still a long way to go. There is no worldwide recognition yet on women’s rights as human rights.

A classic example to prove it is the brutal gang rape incident in Delhi last December. The international media reported that the perpetrators abused the woman for being out at night with a man and said they would “teach her a lesson.” It was a good incident on how women are subjected to violence and oppression, and denied basic rights around the world, which is so in Sri Lanka too.

This year too we are about to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 and to celebrate this special day, a film marathon on gender based violence by Anomaa Rajakaruna will be held at the Goethe Institut Colombo on March 9.

Features

A six-hour film marathon from 2 pm-8 pm will showcase five features and five documentaries by Anomaa on timely themes such as domestic violence, women’s property rights, reproductive rights, sexual harassment at workplaces, women in politics and the girl child.

The internationally acclaimed film and documentary director and social activist, Anomaa Rajakaruna talks to the Sunday Observer about the upcoming ‘Inside Outside’ film festival.

Question: Every year we have experienced different types and levels of celebrations/awareness campaigns for Women’s Day globally. What is your view on having a specific day to talk about women’s rights and issues?

Answer: In Sri Lanka today it’s quite important if we can talk about women's rights on a daily basis. I believe the point of having a special day for women is to recognise the necessity to talk about women-related issues. In the past we talked about domestic violence and it was a struggle to achieve equality among the families and society. Most of the time the same inside issues became the outside issues too.

Today, the whole world is talking about these issues in a serious manner and a good example is the ‘One billion rising Sri Lanka’ project which is an international attempt to discuss and take action against violation of women's rights. During the past few months we saw a 20 percent increase in men who started a campaign for women's rights which is a positive sign. Therefore, I believe it is important to have a specific day to celebrate and talk about women's rights globally.

Impact

Q: What kind of impact or betterment do you expect among the women in Sri Lanka, from the film festival?

A: It is an eye opener. Most of the films and documentaries that I have selected for the festival are taking the platform for action. The oldest film, I produced in 1985, with the theme, ‘fight against violence on women’, will also be screened at the festival. Here I would do a comparison with the audience on whether the issues still remain in society as it is or are eliminated completely or are active in another form.

I believe we have enough laws in Sri Lanka to secure women's rights. The problem is, the social attitude has to change. By showcasing the films back to back I hope to start a discussion about the topics. It would be a good starting point for a marathon and will continue in different forms and formats.

For example, the film Vilangu has been used by different groups for diverse purposes in the past 20 years and I think it will continue further.

Traditions

Q: Most of the celebrations and awareness campaigns for women's rights are restricted in the metropolitan cities of the country. Don’t you think these exercises should be broadened to the grass-roots level of society, if we are to see a real impact?

A: Most of the campaigns by women's organisations in the country to assure women's rights were not related to the cultures and traditions of society. They launched the foreign campaigns straight away without considering the social, cultural and economic aspects of society. It is one of the criticisms raised against most women's organisations in the country.

I am an artiste using my capacities in photography, writing and film making to bring to light gender related violence and other issues in society. I believe the language barrier is a key factor which continuously restricts women's rights campaigns in metropolitan cities. It is not an easy task to eliminate but is a must that we have to consider.

Anomaa who has won several international awards for her documentaries has directed more than 20 documentaries on gender based violence and a few tele-films as well. Some of the films were screened at several women’s film festivals around the world.

The films to be screened are as follows: ‘Senehaka Kathawak’ -1985, ‘Vilangu'-1989, ‘Suddhi’ The Cow’ based on a Malayalam short story-2000, Bodimak saha Pasdenek’ - 2004, ‘Heta Aluth Davasak...’ – 2008. Also five documentaries are based on issues raised on ‘Beijing Platform for Action'.

I made several documentaries on the Domestic Violence Act for lobbying with decision makers and the judiciary and after the Bill was passed in Parliament I made several documentaries to create awareness of the Domestic Violence Act among women as well as law enforcement agencies. One of the documentaries screened will be “Yet another Five...” a documentary about five rape victims where they talk about the necessity for a fast track court.

I agree that many cultures deprive women their rights. But if we need to challenge something we had better be aware of what it is so that we can find a better way to do it.

We have to be sensitive to cultural practices when using colours and translating slogans. For example, take black as a colour.

‘Women in Black’ as a peace campaign might not work in Sri Lanka because in our culture ‘White’ communicates better.A slogan like “Real men beat eggs, not women” works in English but a translation will not work in local languages.For me, lack of easy access to drinking water, firewood, maternity health or any other health facility are violations.In rural and semi urban areas women are responsible for fetching water and firewood for the family. So if they have to walk far to fetch these things they have to give up on their little free time.

As a society we don't consider that women are entitled to free time nor do they have a right to it. For me it is a violation. We never consider decisions concerning a woman's body as her right. The family, society, religion and other agencies take decisions on behalf of them and expect women to obey. It is a violence.

 

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