Cinema World Tour, Film #38
Country: Western Sahara (Sahrawi Republic)/ Brazil
Watched in: Varanasi, U.P., India
Rating: 8/10
Um Fio de Esperança: Independência ou Guerra no Saara Ocidental is one of the most interesting documentaries I've ever seen. That has a few reasons: First of all, I strongly support most independence struggles on the world. It's shocking that so few countries recognize the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as an autonomous state and that so little is known about it. So every film or documentary on this subject – that I myself wasn't very well educated in – are most appreciated.
The second reason is that this is a documentary from a completely different perspective. All documentaries I've seen so far are all from Europe (and even there, only from France, Germany and UK) or the United States. So all documentaries I've seen so far reported on foreign countries and unknown conflicts, but from a very familiar point of view. A Thread of Hope actually taught me a lot of background information I wasn't aware of: for example Cuba's immense solidarity with struggles for just reasons all around the world. That many students in the SADR speak Spanish and want to go to a Cuban university. Not only does it teach a lot about the country it's telling about, this documentary also tells a lot about Brazil itself, especially how activism works and how it's organized there.
But after all, the most important reason is that this documentary doesn't bother asking the question which side – the Morrocan or the Sahrawi – is the right one. There is no question there: the side of the suppressor is always the wrong one. This documentary is 100% with the Sahrawi people and even shows solidarity with their militant actions. That's great political filmmaking.
This film has an important message, pointed out clearly: if not more countries recongnize WS, if the UN don't put this long overdue topic on their agenda, a new war will start soon – a war which the Sahrawi have every right to fight. But a war and hundreds of deaths could be avoided so easily, if just some countries would fuck their shitty trade agreements with the imperialist Morrocan government and recognize these suppressed people. But as usual, capitalism rules our world. And as we know, capitalism is the best friend of neo-colonialism and imperialism. Same message goes for so many other struggles, which could be solved so easily: Azawad (Northern Mali), Catalonia (North-East-Spain), etc. Most recent: Nagorno-Karabakh (between Armenia and Azerbaijan). Why can't these people just live in autonomy and peace?
Anyways, A Thread of Hope is an amazing documentary, definitely worth the 90 minutes. Watch it here.
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