The Universal Declaration of Human Rights entered the 70th year of its existence on 10 December 2017, the International Human Rights Day.
To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights in Geneva (FIFDH), the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) joined forces to launch ‘Human Rights Film Tour’ an international tour spread over 45 countries including Zimbabwe, China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Nigeria, Brazil, Cuba and Guatemala.
On the occasion, Geneva-based International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights’ (FIFDH) Director Isabelle Gattiker and filmmaker Juan José Lozano presented the documentary ‘Crime Hunters’ at Lok Virsa in Islamabad.
Swiss embassies all over the world will screen ‘Crime Hunters’ between 10 December 2017 and 10 December 2018, by organizing events based on the FIFDH’s “one film, one topic, one debate” format: screenings followed by debates with local NGOs, journalists, students and activists.
Directed by Nicolas Wadimoff and Juan José Lozano, the film portrays a team of Swiss lawyers from an organization called TRIAL (Track Impunity Always) International. Their mission is to track down perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity who are hiding in Switzerland and to bring them to justice.
The screening of ‘Crime Hunters’ was followed by a panel discussion on “Defending Human Rights in troubled times: Dignity and Adversity”, that will remain the format of the future screenings. Isabelle Gattiker, Director of Geneva-based International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights also attended the event and participated in the panel discussion.
FIFDH is extremely proud to collaborate with the ‘Human Rights through Cinematography’ film festival in Pakistan, and we hope to continue this work together, sharing visions, stories and films that unite us for the defense of peace and human rights”, said Isabelle Gattiker, Director FIFDH.
The screening of ‘Crime Hunters’ at Lok Virsa was part of the closing ceremony of the ‘Human Rights through Cinematography’ film festival. The UN Information Centre together with the Embassy of Switzerland and other member states organized the 3rd edition of the ‘Human Rights through Cinematography’ film festival, which ran from 23 November to 10 December. The opening ceremony of the festival was held at the Embassy of Switzerland, followed by screenings of 25 documentaries at the UN Information Centre, partner embassies, Goethe-Institute, PNCA and several universities across Pakistan.