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Documentary
film 'Saddam's Legacy' brings to light new evidence |
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Documentary film 'Saddam's Legacy' brings
to light new evidence
9.11.2005 |
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London, 8 Dec (KDC)
– ‘Saddam’s Legacy’, a brave and forceful British
documentary during the making of which three people
died, was screened at the Frontline Club on Tuesday
to foreign correspondents and film makers.
‘Saddam’s Legacy’ tells the story of a Kurdish human
rights investigator’s 14-year quest to discover what
happened to 8,000 Kurdish men and boys from the
Barzani tribe abducted from Iraqi Government camps
in 1983. The film features harrowing stories of
torture and the utter disregard for human life and
dignity suffered by the victims of Saddam Hussein’s
brutal regime. The film also features interviews
with Barzani women still hoping for the return of
their loved ones, including one woman who lost her
husband and all five of her sons.
‘Saddam’s Legacy’, which has already been shown in
Germany and will air in the United States in January
2006, is drawing much interest as its release
coincides with the ongoing trial of Saddam Hussein.
Although the trial currently focuses on atrocities
committed in Dujail, Saddam Hussein is expected to
eventually face charges for crimes against the
people of Kurdistan.
During summer 2005, film makers Gwynne Roberts and
John Williams followed Dr Mohammed Ihsan on a
dangerous 800-mile journey across Iraq from the
Kurdistan Region in the North, through Baghdad and
the ‘triangle of death’ and on to the southern
deserts. Dr Ihsan, Kurdistan Regional Government
Minister for Human Rights, was searching for mass
graves of the missing Barzanis and for documents and
video testimony that would link the crime directly
to Saddam Hussein. |
Ms Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, KRG Representative to
the UK and Film maker Gwynne Roberts |
The screening was dedicated to the memory of
co-director John Williams who died of a heart attack
in Erbil, Kurdistan, in September during the making
of the film. A body guard also lost his life and a
labourer died when he stepped on a land mine while
excavating graves near the border with Saudi Arabia.
After the screening, Ms Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman,
Kurdistan Regional Government High Representative to
the United Kingdom, thanked Mr Roberts and said: “I
commend Gwynne and his team for their courage and
for their commitment to bringing this story to the
attention of the world. It is crucial that in the
debate about the rights and wrongs of the Iraq war,
the horrors inflicted by Saddam and his henchmen on
ordinary people are never forgotten.”
Mr. Roberts said: “John (Williams) and I both felt
strongly that international coverage of events in
Iraq is missing the perspective of ordinary Iraqis
and is distorting the view of what is actually
happening in the country. There are huge numbers of
people whose stories are simply not being told. You
have to focus on the past to get a clear
understanding of the present situation.”
On the Kurdistan Region in Iraq, Mr. Roberts said:
“Kurdistan is potentially an extremely wealthy
region if politically it is allowed to develop. You
feel safer in Kurdistan, you can walk around freely
and it feels remarkably European. Go beyond the
borders of the Region and it feels very different.”
On October 17 2005, the bodies of 500 of the missing
Barzanis found by Dr Ihsan near the border with
Saudi Arabia were flown to Erbil International
Airport in Kurdistan, where a ceremony was held in
their honour. The search continues for the remaining
7,500.
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