Documentary film festival focuses on developing world

Kenyan director Wanjiru Kinyanjui

MiradasDoc Film Festival
Guia de Isora
Sunday November 1 – Saturday November 7

THE fourth international documentary film festival in Guia de Isora on Tenerife’s west coast in November concentrated on the continents of Africa, Asia and Latin America.

by James Tweedie

Particular focus was given to India, Egypt and Brazil.

Asian First Film Festival director Sanjoy K. Roy picked his country’s contributions: Autumn in the Himalayas and Eco-Dharma by Malgorzata Skiba, Bullets & Butterflies by Sushmit Ghosh, The Killing Field by Manoj Kumar, Shakti by Praveen Choudhary, Super-30 by Christopher Mitchell, and his own Shahjahanabad – The Twilight Years 1850-1947.

Spanish-resident Egyptian filmmaker Basel Ramsis chose The Sandwich and Un Caballo de Barro (A Clay Horse) by Ateyyat Elabnoudy, The Place I Call Home by Tamer Ezzat, Nobody Returned From There by Nader Helal, You, Waguih by Namir Abdel Messeeh, Viva Guevara by Maha Shahbah, Mixed Salad by Nadia Kamel and These Girls by Tahani Rached.

Amsterdam-based Brazilian documentalist Maria Augusta Ramos selected Buslovers by Cristina G. Müller, her own Juizo, Pernalonga by Julien Folliot and The Rebellious by Bertrand Lira.

Friday’s showings of Africa Is A Woman’s Name – co-directed by Wanjiru Kinyanjui from Kenya, Ingrid Sinclair from Britain and Bridget Pickering from Swaziland – and J’ai Tant Aimé... (I Have Loved So Many...), by Morroco’s Dalila Ennadre.

Africa Is A Woman’s Name relate the power of African women through the lives of three women of different origins and social classes, determined to achieve radical transformations in their everyday lives.

I Have Loved So Many... Tells the story of Fadma, a woman of 75 who at 20 became one of the prostitutes to the soldiers and officials of the French army in Morroco. The end of the colonial period changed her life and destiny.

The mystery of the Guanches

The origins and language of the indigenous people of the Canary Islands remain a mystery, writes Dr Sabina Goralski Filonov Translation by James Tweedie The guanches, the aboriginals of the Canary Islands whose origin, lost in the mists of time, still arouses intense and passionate debate and great controversy about their origins and the how the seven Canary Islands were populated – which according to some studies occurred between 10,000 and 8,000 years BC. Literally, the word ‘Guan’ means man or person and ‘Chenech’ or ‘Chinet’ is applied to the island of Tenerife, thus meaning a man or inhabitant of Tenerife – although according to Núñez de la Peña, the Spanish named them the Guanchos during the conquest of the islands. But with the passage of time, experts in the subject are questioning whether the word Guanche was used to designate the primitive inhabitants of all the islands in the pre-Hispanic period. The term ‘Guanche’ has also ceased to be applied to the di...

Venezuela condemns MUD silence over terror attack

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Los Gigantes Beach Landslide Tragedy - Three Days of Mourning for Victims

SHATTERED IDYLL: Los Guios beach in Los Gigantes in happier times. SANTIAGO del Teide council declared three days of official mourning after two women were killed in a landslide on Los Gigantes beach on November 1. by James Tweedie The local authority announced the period of mourning following an emergency council meeting on Monday November 2, called in response to the tragic deaths of 57-year old British holidaymaker Marion O’Hara and 34-year old Canarian hotel worker Maria Vanesa Arias Romera. Flags at Santiago del Teide town hall were flown at half mast for the period of mourning, and all official functions observed a minute’s silence in memory of the victims. The two women were killed when 130-foot wide stretch of the cliffs above the tiny Los Guios beach collapsed from a height of about 200 feet, burying them beneath rubble up to 15 feet deep, according to a spokesman for the Guardia Civil which was conducting the investigation into the accident. The landslide occurred about 3pm ...

Ex-pats hail extinction of ‘mammoth’ development

Socialists and conservatives unite to defeat CC plan for Las Teresitas beach Protesters outside the town hall SAN ANDREAS residents are celebrating victory after Santa Cruz council voted to deny permission for a controversial development on Las Teresitas beach. by James Tweedie The Association of Friends of Anaga, Las Teresitas and its Coast (Asociacion de Amigos de la Playa de las Teresitas, Anaga y su Litoral), which includes a number of ex-patriots, mounted a demonstration outside Santa Cruz town hall on Friday September 18 to urge opposition councillors to “keep their word” and support a Socialist Party of the Canaries (PSC) motion against the mammoth development. Some wore long paper ‘noses’ and chanted “concejal Pinocho” – councillor Pinocchio – to express their distrust of local politicians. A coalition of small businesses in Anaga, the Friends of the Port group and environmentalists Ben Magec – Ecologistas en Accion also supported the campaign against the scheme...

Venezuelan opposition declares "Zero Hour" for regime change

Venezuela’s opposition declared “Zero Hour” in its putsch against the socialist government on Monday — emboldened by US support. Leaders of the Democratic Unity Roundtable (Mud) coalition gathered for the announcement of their takeover plan a day after their unauthorised referendum seeking a mandate for regime change. National Assembly vice-president and Popular Will (VP) acting leader Freddy Guevara said the Mud-controlled parliament would announce the results of the plebiscite on Tuesday. It asked voters to reject President Nicolas Maduro’s calling of a constitutional reform assembly demand the army support the opposition and back a “national unity government.” But before the announcement of the result Mr Guevara said the national Assembly would form a new government on Tuesday — a move beyond its constitutional powers — along with 1,020 local “Zero Hour committees.” He called a “national general strike” for Thursday while on Friday the assembly would again exceed its powe...

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