Five directors who participate in the program “Current Issues: Terrorism – The Politics of Violence” in the framework of the 6th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – Images of the 21st Century, spoke about the complex issue of terrorism. In the press conference given today, Wednesday, March 17th, the panel consisted of David Ofek (Israel), Yoav Shamir (Israel), Jon Blair (Great Britain), Amalia Zeppou (Greece) and Kostas Vakkas (Greece).
Director Yoav Shamir spoke about his film “Checkpoint” which looks into the Israeli checkpoints along the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The director noted that although the film doesn’t present a pleasing view of the Israeli army, he had no trouble getting a permit to film in the area. “The fact that I’m an Israeli had something to do with it. A Palestinian would have never received a permit despite the fact that by law the grounds are considered public and anyone is allowed there”.
The film “No. 17” by director David Ofek deals with the anonymous victim of a bus bombing in June 2002, and attempts to identify the man that nobody claimed as missing. The director spoke about the way he dealt with the political dispute between Israelis and Palestinians. “My intention was to investigate this small mysterious story, and through it, the Israeli society and its evolution in the past three years”. Ofek revealed his personal conclusions: “I have to say that most of the people I met throughout the making of the film were not angry, even those that were injured in the bombing. They didn’t associate the terrorist act with the occupation though. Therefore, the first thing I noticed was the peoples’ torpidity and the second, the political and social chaos”.
Jon Blair, producer and director of the four films “The age of terror” and Kostas Vakkas, director of the film “In the labyrinths of terrorism” spoke about the evolution of terrorism throughout time, its many forms and the way they dealt with the matter. “When we talk about terrorism we must be aware that it exists in a number of forms. A single word can not convey the entire meaning. There is terrorism for social change, which is the form that I deal with, there is terrorism by liberation movements (like in Palestine and Ireland), and there is the fundamentalist terrorism of Islam. As you can see in the film, there is a big difference between left-winged and fascist terrorism. Today circumstances have changed altogether. Globalization has brought on many changes, young people are no longer politically active and social change is nearly impossible. History teaches us, though, that circumstances always change and they will once again. I’m unsure, though, of what the future has in store”, said Mr. Vakkas.
According to Jon Blair, “It’s essential to look beneath the surface of the attitudes that cause terrorist acts. I’m greatly interested in the examination of people who oppose and hate terrorism. You only have to look at the mysterious stories of the self-named terrorist organizations of the 60’s that focused on national and local demands. They too aimed at the public but not in the way that it’s done nowadays. To comprehend terrorism we must focus on the major changes of our modern world. Every nation and every person has a different outlook on terrorism depending on their morals and each one of us arrives at their own conclusions when seeing the film, to realize if what you initially believe in is true. Otherwise we’ll never be able to learn how to protect ourselves and ensure the continuation of our democracy”.
In her film “Stigma” director Amalia Zeppou deals with the relatives of the victims of the terrorist organization November 17. As she stated, she desired to portray the prejudice against the victims and their families in Greek society. “It’s important to note that for 27 years, the relatives of the victims had never met each other and felt embarrassed to confess or speak about it. The government never supported them. Nobody knew their social backgrounds, but only the five well-known names of the victims. Many of them suffered hardships including no pension. This is something that never happened in other countries. There was a mysterious silence surrounding them and the whole affair”.
