Thu 19 Apr 2018

Freedom of Press in Egypt

A Mayadin al-Tahrir film screening partnering with Amnesty International, Filmverleih KINOREAL (neuzeitmedia), Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) as well as Europe in the Middle East - The Middle East in Europe
On the occasion of the Amnesty human rights award 2018 to al-Nadeem Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence (Egypt)

Film: Tickling Giants
By Sara Takelst, USA 2016
Documentary, 111 min, German Version
courtesy Filmverleih KINOREAL (neuzeitmedia), ro*co films and the ZDF

Tickling Giants tells the story of Dr. Bassem Youssef, the "Egyptian Jon Stewart", who decides to leave his job as a heart surgeon and becomes during the Egyptian revolution a very popular late-night comedian with a show on his own. The movie is about how he finds creative, non-violent ways to protect free speech and fight a president who abuses his power.

With this screening, we are raising awareness on Shawkan, a photojournalist and prisoner of concious. Shawkan was detained 2013 while documenting the violent attack on a protest camp by security forces. Since then he has been detained with 700 other people, and his trial was postponed over 40 times. While he is in a poor health condition and suffers from Hepatitis C, he is denied medical access.

Guests & Discussants:
Taher Mokhtar (al-Nadeem Center)
Aya Ibrahim (Deutsche Welle)
Ilyas Saliba (Amnesty International)

Dr. Taher Mokhtar, a medical doctor, erected several field hospitals during the 2011 uprising to take care of injured protesters. In 2016 he was detained by Egyptian security forces because he owned information material for the improvement of the medical care of prisoners. During his detention he witnessed the abuse and torture of political prisoners.

Aya Ibrahim is a reporter and video journalist for Deutsche Welle News and Deutsche Welle Arabic. Her reporting focuses on human and minority rights in the Arab region, which has taken her to Iraq, Egypt, Maruitania, Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan and Qatar amongst others. From 2015 to 2017 she coordinated the multiple award winning arabicspeaking talk show “Shababtalk”.

Ilyas Saliba is the Middle East coordinator at the German section of Amnesty International. He is also a research fellow at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center and has worked on political developments in Egypt.

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