.

The Canal of Brugge

2010-04-30T03:52:00.000-07:00

In Brugge we left our poems

Our love`s memories…..

Along ……

Through the narrow roads,

We left the horses

And the strangers

In Brugge we crossed the colored rivers

The birds on our heads

And the maps of the old Cities on surface of the water of Brugge`s canal

When we lost

We found a Greek restaurant

From Delfi

Brugge in the spring suit

Opened the gates

To the dancers

Brugge mixed it`s days and nights

With love and memories .

Taher ALWAN

2009

…………………………..

* Brugge is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country .The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam, it is sometimes referred to as "The Venice of the North”..WP

The boats of Ostend

2010-04-29T14:06:00.000-07:00

On the coast of Ostend

I saw the old fisherman

Alone ,

Between the boats

The boats with no sailors

The young girls alone with no friends

The fisherman called the old friends

The port with a gray color

No fishes yet and no lovers on the benches

I saw the old fisherman singing alone

I saw the young two girls alone

Before the sunset we heard the voice of the sailors

They came with the fishes

The old fisherman waiting for them

With gifts and flowers

The girls waiting with sweets

The old fishermen

The girls

The boys

The birds

All , on the boat

They celebrated all the night

Ostend welcome it`s old sailors

22-4-2010

…………………………………….

* Ostend is a beautiful biggest Belgian city on the coast , which has all the assets of a large town, situated in Europe's busiest maritime area ,it is undoubtedly a versatile short sea port. It located in the Flemish province of West Flanders.

The old lady

2010-04-22T00:15:00.000-07:00

The old lady
Our neighbor
Knocked on the door of the moon
No one opened
Every one was in the bed
The moon as well,
Except her
She knocked on the door of the shiny , big star
The star was lazy to say hi
The old lady stayed alone …
Looking to the moon and the shiny star
Asking where is he?
When they were young
She forgot the old ugly face of the life
She waited until the new moon came
With a young boy
He was him
She was her
The moon was alone , pale and got old
Looking to a young boy and a young girl
17-4-2010

Circles

2010-04-21T23:58:00.000-07:00

A Circle of love
Around the world
A circle of war
Around the strangers
Love x War
The strangers painted the wall of the museum
The dark wall
They wrote the names of the soldiers on the wall
They planted the flowers as well
They lit the candles
They are not strangers
They are the soldiers
Of the white world
Who planted the flowers
and painted a circle of love
around the world

17-4-2010

Black and White

2010-04-17T15:36:00.000-07:00

The film is starting
Light in the darkness
No one in the room
No face on the screen
Images ….images …..images
Colors …colors…..colors
She run in the dark
He run in the light
Two cities
Two worlds
Dark …..light
Black ….white
Alone …..alone ….alone
On the big screen
He watched her running
Alone in the dark
On the screen
On the big screen
She watched him running
Alone in the dark
On the big screen
She watched him running
Alone , in the light
On the black big screen
Of the sad world
Her black with his white …met
Once …………..
The film started
With colors and smiles
They ran together
In the dark
In the light
They made together:
Colors ….colors …..colors

17-4-2010

The woman with the mask

2010-04-07T12:52:00.000-07:00

When the door opened
She will enter her room
With her lights and sparrows
With her images and….her mask
No one no about her
The actress of the village
And the magician woman
When she opened her box
She saw her face on an old mirror
Face like her face
She look in her images
Looking for the face
All the images are her face
With him
With her
With them
With her
With that
With those
But…
Not with herself
She made a circle around her shadow
She try to find who is there?
She, the shadow , the actress , the magician ?
She asked herself with her mask
With no mask …
She dance alone with her mask
With no mask
With her images
But…
The window opened
She wasn’t there
It was her mask
And her shadow
She heared his voice
Faint but kind
She wore her colored clothes
For him
He tried to know who is she ?
Where is she ?
With mask?
With the shadow?
In the images ?
The dancer?
The magician ?
But ….
She …
Only she , knows that him …
Only him …
Was in all her images
The power of hear magic
And she felt him with mask
Or …
With no mask

2-4-2010

Sunshine .....

2010-04-01T14:09:00.000-07:00

Sunshine ...sunshine ...sunshine
You are not alone ,
Look :
Lands of peace
Full of happiness
You are with colored Horizons
No sorrow any more
No loneliness
You are in the other side of the world
But
You are every where
Your heart full of lights
Your sole full of love
You have a small world in your heart
Worm and shiny
When you open your hand
The golden birds fly
When you whisper
The flowers blossom
Where are you ?
You are here and there
Because sunshine came with you
Your shirt painted by spring
Your eyes colored by the nature
Blue , yellow , green , pink , festival of colors around you
Peace to the people your words
Sunshine ..sunshine ..sunshine
You are always sunshine

1st.April2010
for you , and for all the people who celebrate the spring coming and Easter

Asleep....Awake

2010-03-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

Asleep

Thus asleep on the surfaces
Eat human rights items
Drink the wine of the revolution
Revolutionary of the mirror
or Tramps or in (Camp) block-booking
the papers sellers
Exfiltrate Secretary-General
And strangers of the city surrounded the Narcissus
a Stone coming from the roof of the world falling such a tear in a Cup
no one in the corridors of the United Nations
the roof of the world congested by the bats of the continents .

Awake

Awake on the frost
Germanic woman
Come the late
drink us the milk of San Jose
fed us bread of Franks
Watch our lost
tilled in a vacuum talk
Dull as migrants having
like a frog jump on the tables
Sit under a shed velvet
The article succeeds in a vacuum
The names repeated countless , she count our faces
Awake to frost
hug the door of grief
And roam the felt of racism
Printed kiss on the wall of refugees ..

2009

2010-03-23T13:25:00.000-07:00

The Sparrow of the misery

The Sparrow of the misery
Flashing as a pot of magic
Moving through the pavement
Wild beauty reduced concern
We in wagons pursue our ghosts
Whenever we get close to the edge of talk
Stopped glow orange
Not .. no wall or barrier ..
It dates back whenever it came back
our Words falling in the space of the Case
We are marching for body of the city

............................

Cloud

Dreaming of contemptuously Cloud
The mad of the adventurers
But the moment frozen
The concern is the roof of the location
When we were ... full our books with clouds
And locked returnees
Kept yelling at the desert
Woods and dates
the cloud for us
Peddlers conducting their clouds
We weave a land of clouds
.........................
Translated by :j.Tachmintzis

...............................

2010-03-19T15:24:00.000-07:00

WHERE IS MY BELOVED?

Where is my beloved amongst the noise and the rush?
Where is my beloved, lost, amongst the lights?
Where is my beloved amongst the chaos of words?
Where is my beloved?
Where is my beloved?
Oh world, be kind to my beloved!
My beloved is to be found in the path of strangers
On the face of the sea
On the shadows of the clouds
On the wings of the birds
Flying in a breeze of perfumes
Oh world, why such sorrow on my beloved`s face?
Why did her fingertips grow cold waiting for me for so long?
Where is my beloved?
Why has my beloved`s blossom fallen in the hands of a dark wolf?
Why have my beloved`s candles gone out leaving her to sleep alone?
Why has the night cold surrounded my beloved?
Why hasn`t the moon come to cover my beloved?
Why haven`t the stars come to light the face of my beloved?
My beloved is sleeping, let all the pipes of the world fall silent
Let all the poems and pure words hang like a necklace around my beloved`s neck.
....................
Translated by :j.Tachmintzis

The Dancer and the War

2008-08-23T13:32:00.000-07:00

The Dancer and the War

(dedicated to the Iraqi dancer Hanaa Abdullah)

She is a woman of the world`s continents
There is no difference between dancing and dancing
The dance is one, the human race is one.
Hanaa comes from the furthest street of Baghdad
In the winter dawn
Carrying her dances and songs
Like blue sparrows
She lets them loose in the days of Baghdad.
She has been waiting a long time for the theatre to light up
She imagines the streets lined with jasmine bushes
And the audiences waiving at her
But the street to the National Theatre is blocked
The jasmine bushes crushed by the tanks
Hanaa stands by the wall of the Theatre
Looking for the lights and the audiences
She dances and dances in the blue horizon
And puts on a silver crown
She dances hajaa, lailat alhinaa, bintul taraf, ursul qaryah
She dances…..dances…..dances
She swirls….swirls…..swirls
The world swirls….swirls…..swirls
The crowds cheer, throw her flowers
She swirls….swirls….with the music and voices
The General stops her and says ‘No dancing, the Theatre closed,
It became a military base’
....................
Translated by :j.Tachmintzis

Eyes and emotions

2008-07-03T04:22:00.000-07:00

Eyes and emotions

Since years I am waiting for you
Like the sky waiting the birds
Like the sea waiting the waves
Like the waves waiting the shores
I am the moment of love
You are the moment of the beauty
Love and beauty
Where is the time , the history of love ?
Let me learn more
But I learn from your eyes more
Even many people around you
Even others looking to you
Even people have eyes and emotions
Even you are free to fly in your world
But
You are here , where the love flourish in paris , in boyeon , in de pan , in monshaw , in herve
we left our smiles on the old chairs
Where we was under the rain
In the small hotel
We look to the hidden moon
It was our golden mirror
While we wrote our names
Who are the new lovers?
Under endless shiny sky we gave the world our kisses
Our jasmines to the towns and villages
All the people smiled for us
While we are here or their
A way from each others
May be I saw a pretty woman
May be you saw an old friend
But
We are the beginning of love and the end.

Monument to Freedom

2008-06-16T09:46:00.000-07:00

Under the Monument to Freedom (Alhuria)

Under the Monument to Freedom
Stands an old man with a child
They came through the North Gate
Drunk water in the summer heat of Bagdad
And contemplated the Monument to Freedom
The child was pale
The old man’s face was worn with age
The moments passed and suddenly
The foreign soldiers came
Stamping their boots and shouting
The child was scared
The old man sheltered under the Monument to Freedom
And looking up cried out:
Oh strange soldiers,
Has freedom been crucified on the Monument to Freedom?

...................................................

* To Read more of my poems , please look the blog`s archieve on the right column

URUK

2008-06-16T09:34:00.000-07:00

Strangers in Uruk

Deep from the heart of Uruk
The songs of Sumer can be heard
The night singing
Voices of monks
In the temples of Sumer and Uruk
We were there
We passed through temples, palaces and distant places
Looking for our histories
For our memories
The rockets passed over us
The pages of the night were torn
The tanks landed
The voices of the monks stopped
The small flowers were crushed
Uruk still shines in its winter night
Old clans disappeared
Other clans came
A new dawn arose from the night of beautiful Uruk

2008-06-16T09:31:00.000-07:00

The Hanging Nation

Two or three years passed since I gathered jasmines
To make a necklace for the nation
I thought of the nation like a swing
Or a wet- nurse doing the rounds
I thought of it as a mule or a donkey carrying the foreigners` bags
I thought of it as a father with a long moustache raising his stick to history
I thought of it as a mother doing the rounds with her round bread
A year ago
I saw the nation hanging on the Hanging Bridge
I said its convoy will settle
And its children will crawl
Past the blocked bridges to their schools
I saw the nation before the gates of the burnt Ministries
Thin, raising its arms to heaven
I said the promise of the Founding Fathers will come true
And what the New York Times said will come true
And what CNN said will come true
And what USA Today said will come true
And what the BBC said will come true
It will come true. It will come true
I start feeding the nation words
And giving it speech to drink
We sleep together on the pavement of the revolutions
Covering ourselves with satisfaction
We had enough good will
But the hanging nation is still hanging
And the Founding Fathers teach the nation the rules of hypocrisy
While robbing it as it raises its arms to the heavens
Alone, looking at the empty space

De Millo

2008-06-16T09:27:00.000-07:00

In memory of Sergio Vieira de Millo

( UN Representative in Iraq assassinated in 2003)

Once upon a time of alienation
A woman appeared as if from all the continents
She lived in Brazil, traveled to Hong Kong,
Slept on the plains of Asia
A woman from the mythology of the past
Followed by shadows, music, incense
Welcomed by rice feasts and rituals
She gave birth to boy who belonged to the world
De Millo came to Arachid Street
Followed by barbed wire
And army binoculars
The land was awakened by fear
And slept with ghosts
And the politicians` pile of trash grew bigger
De Millo made his way through the crowds to see for himself
And declared: here is a utopia for those who feel strangers in their own land
He drank many bitter coffees
Looking at the nights of Baghdad he saw
No lovers, no flowers, no love poems of Abi nawas
No poetry of Alrasafi, no Almeidan Square, no cinema lights
De Millo made a map of Iraqi sadness
He swam in the marshy waters
He flew with the geese above it
He marked the borders of suffering
He followed the barbed wire and the binoculars
De Millo came back with a wreath of jasmine
Painted a people`s utopia in the shape of Iraq
De Millo bore the burden under the ruins, fire and bullets.

Baghdad Museum

2008-04-10T02:30:00.000-07:00

By the gates of Baghdad Museum
Are the footprints of past guards
And past monks.
Words crawl
Stone museum objects gather.
Having opened a hole in the wall with speech
And draped the museum with songs of freedom
The cowboys pass through the corridors.
They stop by the statue of Abso
They dance the samba by the skeleton of Godya
By the Tablets they listen to speeches.
Time has no meaning
Nor do the Museum`s trees
Until the convoys come to lift out the crown of Uruk.
The incense of the temples follows the aircraft
The monks sip the rest of the bullets
And beat the drums
And are moved by horses to the Pentagon.
Take the blue pumpkin and the birds of the Assyrians!
The winged oxen fly over Congress
Almaukeb Street disappears in Soho
The dragonflies hover over Wall Street
And the friends of the Museum clap
The futile efforts to reclaim Mesopotamia
..................
Translated by : J.Tachmintzis

PEACE TO BAGHDAD

2008-04-07T11:28:00.000-07:00

Peace to Baghdad

No one is going to Baghdad
No moon is lighting up its nights
No sun is brightening up its days
Its children are orphans
Its women are sad
Its flowers are withered
Baghdad is exhausted by the war
Five years after March 2003
Five years of destruction and sadness
The voices of the mosques cry out:
The bells of the churches ring:
The chimes of the temples sound:
Stop the War!
Stop the massacres!
Stop the rivers of blood!
Give the smile back to Iraqi children!
Give the land to its people!
Stop the War!
Stop the killing!
Bring back Peace!
....................

translated by : j.Tachmintzis
http://www.indymedia.be/node/26452

http://www.brusselstribunal.org/Messages190308.htm

TAHER ALWAN IN A PANEL DISCUSSION

2008-04-07T11:13:00.000-07:00

: EU not doing enough on major refugee crisis
Brussels (18 March) – As the world marks five years since the invasion of Iraq, the millions of Iraqis displaced inside the country and abroad remain in dire circumstances. The EU and its Member States are not doing enough to support and protect them. In a panel discussion organised in Brussels, an Iraqi writer :Dr.Taher ALWAN, the director of the Iraqi Youth League and several other international experts addressed the role of the EU in the Iraqi displacement crisis.
"The EU and its Member States cannot continue to ignore one of the world’s major displacement crises" said the group of eight NGOs sponsoring this event. "They are not living up to their responsibility to assist Iraqi asylum seekers, host countries in the region and Iraqis inside the country". These remarks are based on new research about the treatment of Iraqi asylum claims in Europe, the conditions of Iraqi refugees in neighbouring countries and the human rights situation in Iraq.
Inside Iraq an estimated 6 million people are still in need of urgent humanitarian assistance as a result of the conflict. Approximately 2 million of those displaced abroad are hosted by Syria and Jordan, but the strain on their resources is now leading these governments to restrict access to their territory. Most of those allowed to stay live in a legal limbo - they have neither received refugee status nor been granted legal residence or extended visas. The number of Iraqi asylum claims in the EU is incomparably smaller (some 100,000 since 2003), but their treatment varies significantly from one Member State to another, producing an unfair situation whereby the same group of people receive different levels of protection depending on where they are within the EU. Additionally, only 7 EU Member States currently offer resettlement programmes to vulnerable refugees in third countries.
In light of the problems above, the eight NGOs call on the EU and Member States to:

ensure effective protection to asylum seekers, wherever they apply in the EU;
ensure no one is forcibly returned to Iraq and access to legal status and basic services for those whose asylum claims have been rejected;
expand the resettlement programmes to accommodate more Iraqi refugees from third countries, in particular vulnerable groups such as women, children and torture survivors;
provide financial and technical assistance to host countries in the region through the UN agencies and NGOs working with the refugee communities;
allocate significant funds for emergency response and rehabilitation inside Iraq, including through redirecting funds from the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI).
The panel discussion on the EU’s role in the Iraqi displacement crisis took place on19 March, at 10:30am at the Brussels think tank, The Centre.

Participants :

available for interviews before and after the event - include Dr.Taher Alwan, an Iraqi lived in Belgium and member of Amnesty Belgium; Majeed F. Mutar, Director of an Iraqi humanitarian NGO; and experts from the sponsoring NGOs who have just returned from field missions in Iraq, Jordan and Syria. The NGOs organizing the panel discussion are: Amnesty International; European Council on Refugees and Exiles; International Catholic Migration Commission; International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims; International Rescue Committee; Islamic Relief Worldwide; Mercy Corps; and Norwegian Refugee Council.

For further comment/background and interviews: Amnesty International EU Office (Brussels): Tel: 32-2-5021499 Fax: 32-2-5025686

Email: amnesty-eu@aieu.be

http://www.amnesty-eu.org/static/html/pressrelease.asp?cfid=12&id=350&cat=

Interview with Taher ALWAN byDeutsche Presse-Agentur

2008-04-07T10:56:00.000-07:00

A new Tower of Babel? Iraqis flee sectarian violence

Interviewed by : DPA

Brussels - Professor Taher Alwan , used to teach at Baghdad University's institute of fine arts.
In 1996, he left Iraq in protest at Saddam Hussein's brutal regime, but gladly returned after the US-led invasion of 2003 with high hopes for his country.
He founded a film festival to support Iraq's new generation of film-makers and a non-governmental organization (NGO) that produces documentaries about human rights.
But success brought public recognition, and unwanted attention from the country's militias. Forced to change his home three times by a series of death threats, he finally decided to leave his family and worldly possessions behind and flee to Belgium, where he has been living .
'Still today, I do not understand why they'd want to threaten a film-maker. Perhaps it was because I invited girls and boys to attend meetings together, or maybe it is because I criticized the abuse of women's rights ' Alwan told Deutsche Presse-Agentur in an interview in Brussels.
'But what I do know is that while I am no politician, the threats were certainly politically motivated,' he added.
Alwan is one of more than 2 million Iraqis who have fled their country amid the sectarian violence that has erupted since the US-led invasion. Most of them now live in neighbouring Syria and Jordan, while only a fraction of them have made it to Europe.
NGO workers active in Iraq complain that the tackling the problem of sectarian violence in the wrong way. Instead of fostering mutual understanding, they are driving an ever deeper wedge between Shia and Sunni, Christians and Kurds.
And this strategy, they warn, risks encouraging more people like Alwan to seek asylum abroad.

Mar 19, 2008, 18:34 GMT

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/middleeast/features/article_1396133.php/A_new_Tower_of_Babel_Iraqis_flee_sectarian_violence

La Vie quotidienne des femmes en Irak :par Taher ALWAN

2008-04-07T10:40:00.000-07:00

La Vie quotidienne des femmes en Irak à
l'occasion de la journée mondiale de la femme

Projection film documentaire -Conférence -Débat
Samedi 8mars 2008 à 20h
Au Centre Culturel de Seraing
Rue Renaud Strivay,44 - 4100 Seraing-Liege
avec : Dr. Tahir ALWAN
réalisateur et cinéaste
Zaineb MSAFER
Journaliste irakienne, traductrice pour la presse
Fanny LAFOURCADE
Auteur de "Le chaos irakien"
Inaâm KACHACHI
Historienne, journaliste et écrivaine irakienne
Débat animé par Dominique DAUBY
Secrétaire générale des FPS

En collaboration avec les FPS, Amnesty International et le Centre Culturel de Seraing
Entrée gratuite

Literaire Wake : vijfde verjaardag inval in Irak

2008-04-07T10:22:00.000-07:00

Literaire Wake : vijfde verjaardag inval in Irak

datum19 maart 2008
locatiePassa Porta, Dansaertstraat 46, B-1000 Brussel
inkomgratis
linkhttp://www.passaporta.be
Literaire Wake : vijfde verjaardag inval in IrakIn de nacht van 19 op 20 maart 2003 bombardeerden het Amerikaanse leger en zijn bondgenoten de eerste doelwitten in Bagdad. Samen met het BRussells Tribunal en meer dan 70 schrijvers, denkers en kunstenaars uit binnen- en buitenland herdenkt Het beschrijf vijf jaar later de enorme humanitaire crisis waartoe deze inval heeft geleid met een Literaire Wake. Een bijzondere en gevarieerde avond om stil te staan bij de gevolgen van de oorlog en na te denken over de verdere afloop. Met een debat, getuigenissen van Iraaks-Belgische kunstenaars en veel auteurs…
DEEL 1 : DEBAT (20 u. > 21.25 u.)Nicky Aerts (VRT) debatteert met bekende academici over de toekomst van Irak :- Rik Coolsaet, hoogleraar internationale politiek (UGent) publiceerde onlangs De geschiedenis van de wereld van morgen- Anne Morelli is als historica verbonden aan de ULB, en legde onder meer de elementaire principes van oorlogspropaganda bloot- Lieven De Cauter is filosoof en medeoprichter van het BRussells Tribunal, het platform tegen de oorlogslogica van de VS- Jean Bricmont is fysicus en filosoof (UCL). Van hem verscheen recent Humanitaire interventies, mensenrechten als excuus voor oorlog.
Auteurs Annelies Verbeke, Layla Nabulsi en Gie Bogaert lezen een “Bericht aan de Bevolking”* op het podium.
DEEL 2 : IRAAKSE KUNSTENAARS GETUIGEN (21.45 u. > 22.55 u.)Iraakse kunstenaars die in België wonen praten met Nicky Aerts. Ze getuigen van de aanhoudende humanitaire crisis in hun land : - Fotograaf Karim Abraheem vluchtte in 1980 naar België en keerde pas onlangs terug naar zijn geboorteland. Tot 13 april toont hij in Passa Porta foto’s van Iraki's in hun dagelijkse, schijnbaar vreedzame omgeving. - Dr.Taher Alwan is een belangrijk schrijver, journalist, festivalorganisator en universiteitsdocent uit Bagdad. De oorlogssituatie dwong hem om anderhalf jaar geleden te vluchten naar België. - De Iraakse luitspeler Ali Abdulrasol zorgt voor muzikale intermezzo’s
Met live “Berichten aan de Bevolking”* door Nicole Verschoore, Bart Koubaa, Mustafa Kör, Patrick Lateur, Ingrid Vander Veken
DEEL 3 : DICHTERSPODIUM (23.15 u. > 24 u.)Dichters palmen het podium in en richten hun verzen tot het volk. Met “Berichten aan de Bevolking” door Herlinda Vekemans, Alain Delmotte, Daniel Simon, Kurt De Boodt, Johan De Boose, Peter Theunynck, Frank De Crits, Benoît Coppée, Serge Van Duynhoven, Didi de Paris, Xavier Roelens, Lieven De Cauter en Peeters Holvoet-Hanssen.
Berichten aan de BevolkingMeer dan 70 auteurs, onder wie Harold Pinter, Richard Powers, Tariq Ali, Paul Verhaeghen, Annelies Verbeke, Koen Peeters, Rachida Lamrabet en Paul Bogaert, … schreven Berichten aan de Bevolking: een literaire reflectie, een poëtische tekst of een woordensalvo waarin zij op hun manier aandacht vragen voor de droeve verjaardag. Alle berichten worden door Het beschrijf verzameld en ter publicatie aangeboden aan de Belgische media. Een aantal "berichtgevers" zijn ook aanwezig tijdens de Literaire Wake.
In de week van 17 tot 23 maart worden nog andere herdenkingsacties met kunstenaars en intellectuelen georganiseerd door onze collega’s in de Vooruit in Gent , in Monty in Antwerpen en in de Brusselse Cinema Nova. Daarnaast tonen een aantal auteurs hun engagement door samen met Vredesactie op 22 maart een “literaire wandeling” rond het NAVO-hoofdwartier te organiseren.
Meer informatie op
Toegang: gratisOrganisatie: Het beschrijf, The BRussells TribunalLocatie: Passa Porta, Dansaertstraat 46, B-1000 BrusselReservatie: 02 226 04 54 of online(Reserveren is niet noodzakelijk, wel aangewezen)

INTERVIEW MET TAHER ALWAN (NL)

2008-04-07T10:05:00.000-07:00

INTERVIEW MET TAHER ALWAN Iraakse schrijver, filmcriticus en producer

by Gonnie put

De militaire invasie in Irak opende de doos van Pandora’, besluit Taher Alwan. Zelf werd de Iraakse schrijver, filmcriticus en producer opgejaagd en bedreigd maar zijn passie voor film bleef ongeschonden.
Op je 46ste ben je al twee keer je land ontvlucht.In de jaren 80 was er de oorlog met Iran, daarna de Iraakse inval in Koeweit. Na het VN handelsembargo in 1991 was het leven in Irak hard, onmenselijk. Er was nauwelijks elektriciteit en watertoevoer. Op dat ogenblik gaf ik les aan de kunstacademie. Later werd ik hoofd van het filmdepartement. Ik heb ook altijd filmrecensies geschreven voor kranten en tijdschriften. Zoals zoveel Iraakse kunstenaars, journalisten en hoger opgeleiden werd ik het voorwerp van bedreigingen. In 1996 besloot ik Irak te verlaten. Ik ging eerst lesgeven in Jordanië, daarna in Libië. Ik keerde pas terug naar Bagdad in 2003, na de val van Saddam Hoessein.
Waarom ging je terug?Ik wilde in Irak een vzw voor films oprichten. Dat was mijn grote droom en het is gelukt. Daarnaast startte ik, samen met Iraakse partners in Groot-Brittannië, met de redactie van een Arabische krant. Ik ging samenwerken met Amnesty International en producete documentaires van twee van mijn studentes. We draaiden met een budget van hooguit € 2000. De bedoelingen waren dan ook niet commercieel. Ik wilde vooral vrouwelijke filmmakers in Irak motiveren en hen een forum geven. Later groeide het idee om filmfestivals te organiseren. Omdat we erin slaagden steun te krijgen van de Franse ambassade in Bagdad, werd het een filmfestival over de Franse film.
Waarom ging je precies aan de Franse ambassade steun vragen?

Heel eenvoudig. Van Iraakse overheden kregen we altijd een nee op het rekest. We moesten wel op zoek naar buitenlandse investeerders. Toevallig ligt de Franse ambassade niet in de gevarenzone. Bagdad is opgesplitst in een groene en rode zone. De rode zone is ontoegankelijk wegens te gevaarlijk.
En de Fransen zagen wel wat in een filmfestival?

Meer zelfs, omdat de samenwerking zo goed verlopen was, waren zij bereid om opnieuw te investeren. Meteen organiseerden we het eerste internationale filmfestival in Bagdad met films uit 22 verschillende landen.
Het ging allemaal goed. Waar en wanneer liep het weer fout?Voor 2005 ondervonden we nauwelijks weerstand. Na 2005 werd dat anders. Omwille van het groeiende sektarische geweld was de veiligheid van de burgers niet langer gegarandeerd. De Amerikanen en de Britten hadden hierop geen antwoord. Veel mensen verlieten de hoofdstad om elders in het land een veiliger onderkomen te zoeken of vluchtten naar buurlanden als Syrië en Jordanië. Ik werd opnieuw het slachtoffer van dreigtelefoons en dreigbrieven. Ik ben geen politicus en doe niet aan politiek. Ik schrijf alleen maar over films. Wel kom ik als filmcriticus in kranten en op televisie. Ik had een bepaalde naambekendheid, daarom was ik een doelwit.
Van wie kwamen die bedreigingen?In Irak ken je je vijanden niet. De jongste jaren zijn er in het land 130 kunstenaars en 150 journalisten vermoord. Irak kende een heel actieve middenklasse van wie er nu veel gevlucht zijn. In het Verenigd Koninkrijk alleen al zitten 5000 Iraakse dokters. De gewone mensen en de middenklasse zijn niet verantwoordelijk voor die horror maar hebben er zwaar onder te lijden.
Ook jij bent opnieuw moeten vluchten?Hoeveel stress kan een mens aan?

Ik vreesde voor mijn leven. De beslissing om Irak opnieuw te verlaten viel me zwaar. Ik was bezig met de dingen die ik graag deed en ik moest mijn vrouw en zoontje achterlaten.
Wist je dat België je eindbestemming zou worden? Ja. Ik heb bewust voor België gekozen.
Hoezo? Kende je dit landje?Absoluut. Ik had er al veel over gelezen. Ik had thuis zelfs een kaart van België opgehangen. Mijn vrouw vroeg: ‘Waarom hang je die op?’ en ik zei: ‘Ik hou van dat land.’ Ik had ooit een vertaling gelezen van een artikel over Irak van de Belgische journalist Rudi Vranckx. Ik vond hem meteen een goede verslaggever. Onafhankelijk, eerlijk, objectief. Nadien heb ik hem ontmoet. Toen ik in België in het asielcentrum op mijn beslissing wachtte, heb ik hem een brief geschreven. Hij is me daar komen opzoeken. Sindsdien zijn we vrienden.
Rudi Vranckx kwam onlangs in het nieuws omdat hij zijn Iraakse tolk naar België had helpen vluchten. Een begrijpelijke beslissing maar er was ook kritiek. Waarom die ene wel en zovele anderen niet? Ik begrijp de beslissing van Rudi Vranckx volledig. Zijn tolk werd echt bedreigd. Hij verdedigt een mens die het verdient. Waarom die ene? Tja, waarom kiezen de VS 7000 van de 2 miljoen Iraakse vluchtelingen in vluchtelingenkampen? Het probleem is te omvangrijk. Je kan als beschermende overheid niet iedereen opnemen.
Nu heb je het over resettlement: vluchtelingen die in erbarmelijke omstandigheden in kampen leven als gastland uitnodigen om hen bescherming te bieden en een kans op een nieuwe toekomst. Sommige Europese landen doen dit al en in de VS, Canada en Australië is resettlement helemaal ingeburgerd. Moet België dit ook doen?In het algemeen denk ik dat resettlement goed is maar wel mits de juiste omkadering.

Welke rechten krijgen de vluchtelingen?

Wat is de situatie na de oorlog en hoe kan je mensen eventueel laten terugkeren?
Denk jij nog aan terugkeren?Teruggaan is nu geen optie. Ik vind hier mijn weg. Ik word regelmatig als jurylid voor filmfestivals gevraagd. Ik werk nog altijd samen met Amnesty International. Net vandaag heb ik vanuit Irak een documentaire gekregen over het leven van de vrouwen daar. De opdrachtgever is Amnesty. De organisatie gaat de documentaire gebruiken op de Internationale Vrouwendag op 8 maart. Via tentoonstellingen promoot ik hier ook het werk van Iraakse fotografen. We zoeken nu sponsors voor drie documentaires: één over Iraakse vluchtelingen en ontheemden, één over mijnen en clusterbommen en één over een Iraakse danseres. Ik wil ook erg graag een Iraaks filmfestival in Brussel organiseren. Ik ben dus vooral op zoek naar manieren om mijn land van hieruit te steunen. Intussen wacht ik op de komst van mijn vrouw en zoon. Zij kunnen hopelijk binnenkort naar België komen.
Toen de Amerikanen en de Britten in Irak geen massavernietigingswapens vonden, zijn ze de oorlog blijven verdedigen als enige manier om van Irak een democratie te maken.

Volg jij die redenering?

Het positieve aan de oorlog is dat Saddam Hoessein weg is. Maar na de val van Saddam slaagden de VS er niet in om de veiligheid te handhaven. Na vijf jaar invasie is er niets meer: geen elektriciteit, geen watervoorzieningen, geen veiligheid. Is dat een omgeving voor democratie? Mensen willen wel democratie maar verlangen eerst naar een normaal leven. Nu is in het land corruptie troef. De militaire invasie in Irak opende de doos van Pandora.
foto's: Reginald Dierckx(02/2008)
http://www.vluchtelingenwerk.be/actueel/taher_alwan.php

MASTER CLASS by Taher ALWAN - ATHENS

2008-04-07T09:59:00.000-07:00

IRAQI CINEMA IN WAR AND PEACE

MASTER CLASS IN ECOCINEMA FILM FESTIVAL - ATHENS

BY TAHER ALWAN

Cinema at times of peace, cinema at times of war, is the story of Iraqi cinema to be told. A cinema struggling to keep alive under difficult conditions.,with many obstacles and very limited resources.Iraqi cinema goes back to the 40s, under the influence of the modern cinema movements of the time. In the 60s and 70s the film industry developed, but soon became part of the government machinery ending up as a propaganda tool for the war of the 80s. Nonetheless, infrastructure for cinema was developing as were educational and training possibilities for film makers, and funding was available from the Ministry of Culture.The 1991 and 2003 invasions brought many setbacks to film making. Many cinemas were closed, many institutions stopped working, funding dried up, people became concerned by other immediate needs for survival.However, there is reason for optimism. Iraqi film makers have not given up. Concrete proof is the fact that over 400 independent documentaries have been made since the first appeared in 1922, and the fact that the International Bagdad Film Festival was founded in 2005.

Intervew with "PEACE REPORTER" Italian newspaper

2008-04-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

Ancora l'anno zero

scritto per noi da Ilaria Addeo

Taher Alwan, intellettuale iracheno, racconta il suo ritorno in Iraq nel 2003''Ho vissuto fuori per diversi anni perché contrario alla leadership di Saddam Hussein, lavorando in diversi paesi e collaborando con Amnesty International. Sono tornato in Iraq nel 2003, poco dopo l’inizio dell’invasione statunitense, carico di grandi speranze e convinto che il paese sarebbe riuscito a ricostruire una nuova vita e un nuovo governo”.Comincia così il racconto della propria storia Taher Alwan, durante una serata di dibattito, lettura di poesie ed esposizione fotografica sull'Iraq a Passaporta, una libreria fiamminga nel centro di Bruxelles, il 19 marzo scorso, organizzata in occasione del quinto anniversario dell’invasione dell’Iraq con alcuni artisti iracheni rifugiati in Belgio. Tra questi Alwan, scrittore, giornalista e produttore cinematografico, che nelle sue poesie e nei suoi film cerca di raccontare la vita quotidiana degli iracheni di oggi, di coloro che vivono e lavorano tra le mille difficoltà di un paese completamente distrutto in seguito all’invasione del 2003.Fuggito per la prima volta dall'Iraq nel 1996, perché nella lista nera dei perseguitati da Saddam Hussein, in quanto giornalista, professore e film-producer, è ritornato nel proprio paese dopo l'inizio della guerra e ha ricominciato la sua attività di giornalista e professore di Cinematografia all’Istituto di Belle Arti dell’Università di Baghdad.''Quando sono tornato in Iraq il paese era distrutto, senza elettricità, senza polizia a garantire la sicurezza dei cittadini, ma per la gente era ancora normale vivere tutti insieme, sciiti, sunniti e cristiani. Quello che mostrano ora i media non esisteva nel 2003 e 2004. Già prima di lasciare l’Iraq insegnavo all’Università all’Istituto di Belle Arti e mi sono sempre occupato di cinema. Quando sono tornato ho fondato una Ong, specializzata in cinematografia che cerca di produrre film documentari sui diritti umani. Insieme ad alcuni amici e colleghi con cui collaboravo già precedentemente abbiamo inoltre aperto l’ufficio regionale del nostro giornale, di cui non era consentita la circolazione durante il regime di Saddam. Nel 2003 abbiamo quindi creato un ufficio regionale anche a Baghdad e nello stesso tempo fui nominato Direttore del Dipartimento di cultura. Il nostro intento era quello di dare grande spazio alla cultura e alla produzione artistica di giovani registi e produttori iracheni. Dalla stessa Ong è nata quindi l’idea di dar vita ad una manifestazione cinematografica internazionale e così nel 2005 abbiamo realizzato la prima edizione dell’International Baghdad Film Festival, prima manifestazione cinematografica in piena guerra, che ha riscosso un grande successo sia nel paese che all’estero''.Il successo, però, ha portato il riconoscimento pubblico, e attirato l'attenzione delle milizie del paese. Minacciato varie volte e costretto a cambiare casa diverse volte ha deciso infine di lasciare la sua famiglia, i suoi libri e tutte le sue cose e di fuggire in Belgio, dove vive da ottobre 2006.''Tra il 2005 e il 2006 la situazione è diventata molto pericolosa, soprattutto dopo il febbraio 2006 a causa del peggioramento degli scontri tra Sunniti e sciiti. Dopo il successo del Festival e per la mia attività sia di giornalista sia di direttore del Dipartimento di cultura ero molto conosciuto nel Paese per cui era difficile riuscire a sottrarmi alle varie occasioni di visibilità in pubblico, sui giornali e in televisione. Non potevo scomparire, ma tutto questo non mi permetteva di vivere in tranquillità. Nello stesso periodo insegnavo all’Università di Baghdad al Dipartimento di Cinematografia. I partiti radicali e i miliziani avevano diverse ragioni per perseguitarmi, come professore, come giornalista e come film-maker. Per cui mi decisi a lasciare di nuovo l’Iraq''.Una volta lasciato il paese come ha continuato a lavorare ai progetti della sua Ong e del Festival?Non è stato molto difficile. Inoltre negli anni in cui sono stato in Iraq eravamo riusciti a mettere su un ufficio stabile e cominciato a realizzare alcuni documentari, tra i quali uno dedicato ai ragazzi che hanno abbandonato prematuramente la scuola, grazie alla collaborazione dell’Ufficio di cooperazione svizzero in Iraq. Stando all’estero riesco a presentare lavori sull’Iraq che vanno a sostenere i progetti in loco e che mostrano la realtà irachena di oggi. Abbiamo organizzato alcune mostre fotografiche sull’Iraq, mostrando alla gente la vita reale nell’Iraq di oggi. Cerchiamo di realizzare mostre con foto diverse da quelle che di solito mostra la stampa, in quanto non mettono in evidenza il sangue, i morti, le vittime della guerra, ma la vita comune della gente irachena, come si muove, come lavora, i bambini che vanno a scuola, le donne nelle proprie case.Quali sono le maggiori difficoltà che incontrano la sua organizzazione e i suoi colleghi nello svolgere le proprie attività nel paese?Molte organizzazioni cercano di fare tanto, ma c’è molta corruzione, per cui le organizzazioni non si fidano e non hanno la certezza che gli aiuti raggiungano la popolazione. Tuttavia non è impossibile. Anche la nostra organizzazione ha avuto molti problemi nell’operare nel paese, non avevamo una sede né fondi finché non abbiamo avuto il supporto dell’Istituto di Cultura francese che ci ha aiutato a realizzare il Festival cinematografico, altrimenti non avremmo avuto alcun contributo finanziario né dal governo né da qualsiasi altro. Le difficoltà maggiori vengono dalla dilagante corruzione che esiste nel paese e dai pochi fondi destinati alle iniziative culturali. Da questo punto di vista la situazione non è migliorata con la caduta di Saddam. Cinema e teatri sono stati distrutti, i musei, tutte le istituzioni culturali sono state distrutte e non è stato fatto nulla perché fossero ricostruite. È difficile realizzare delle attività culturali anche adesso. Prima dell’invasione dell’Iraq venivano trasmessi spettacoli al cinema fino a mezzanotte, ora invece tutte le attività culturali devono terminare prima del tramonto e la gente non può uscire, c’è il coprifuoco, è difficile lavorare in questa situazione. Sarebbe invece importante sostenere le Ong che lavorano nel paese a portare avanti progetti nel campo dei diritti umani e della cultura. Se questi programmi venissero sostenuti le attività culturali potrebbero avere un ruolo molto efficace nel processo di ricostruzione del paese.Lei ha conosciuto e vissuto l’Iraq del post-Saddam ed ha comunque deciso di lasciare il paese per le difficoltà enormi in cui era costretto a lavorare. Quali sono dunque le sue speranze e come immagina il futuro dell’Iraq?Quando sono tornato in Iraq nel 2003, dopo aver vissuto per molti anni fuori dal paese, rimasi molto turbato dalla situazione di totale distruzione, dalla mancanza di qualsiasi tipo di controllo, ma riservavo dentro di me una grande speranza. L’Iraq è un paese molto ricco. Stando nel paese ho sperimentato quanto fosse difficile e pericoloso per un giornalista lavorare a Baghdad. In Iraq non c’è sicurezza. È difficile poter svolgere il proprio lavoro in una situazione del genere, specialmente per un giornalista e quando scrivi un articolo, pur se in modo indipendente, non sai mai quali critiche, accuse o apprezzamenti puoi attirarti. In Iraq si rischia la vita per questo. Il nostro giornale è sempre stato molto indipendente e laico, e molto critico nei confronti della religione islamica e della politica irachena, tuttavia siamo stati accusati di favorire il partito Ba’th, il che è ridicolo.Riguardo al futuro dell’Iraq, non mi sento di essere molto ottimista, ma non è impossibile per l’Iraq ricostruire una nuova vita. In questo momento, però, la situazione è molto complicata con il grande numero di morti ogni giorno, le milizie che continuano ad uccidere le donne per ragioni sociali, per futili motivi legati alla religione, perché non indossano il velo, o hanno un ragazzo.Cosa pensa della presenza straniera in Iraq, ritiene che sia necessaria finché non si stabilizzi la situazione oppure sarebbe meglio lasciare che gli Iracheni ricostruiscano da soli il proprio paese?Ritengo che ci sia stato un grosso errore da parte degli Stati Uniti e del governo iracheno nell’affrontare i vari problemi connessi alla caduta di Saddam in Iraq. Non si può pensare che un paese vissuto per 35 anni sotto dittatura riesca da un giorno all’altro ad organizzarsi e a stabilire un regime democratico. Bisognava preparare la popolazione in modo graduale. Inoltre affinché ci sia un governo stabile e democratico è necessario fornire alla popolazione i beni primari, elettricità, acqua, ricostruire ospedali, scuole, strade, assicurare un sistema di sicurezza e di garanzia dei diritti umani e delle libertà di espressione. Come dicevo prima, le forze occupanti dovrebbero inoltre sostenere la classe intellettuale, invece non esiste alcun tipo di protezione per i giornalisti, i professori, gli intellettuali. Ero professore di Sociologia cinematografica all’Università ed è impensabile che potessi tenere delle lezioni ed esimermi dal fare critiche o osservazioni sulla situazione dei diritti umani perché in classe avevo figli di miliziani che poi mi minacciavano di morte per quello che dicevo.La violenza settaria sempre più dilagante incoraggia molti intellettuali a lasciare il paese e cercare asilo all’estero. Fortunatamente molti, come Taher Alwan, scelgono di comunicare e far conoscere la realtà del proprio paese, non solo quella sanguinosa, ma anche la vita quotidiana della gente che continua a vivere e a lottare per un futuro in Iraq.
http://www.peacereporter.net/dettaglio_articolo.php?idc=0&idart=10592