This year’s edition of the interdisciplinary art festival Culturescapes is dedicated to the Sahara. With several film evenings, talks and a city tour, terre des hommes schweiz is putting the spotlight on the Western Sahara.
terre des hommes schweiz is participating in this year’s edition of the Culturescapes art festival as a partner for Western Sahara. This is due to the fact that Western Sahara is one of our program countries. Western Sahara is located south of Morocco. It was violently occupied by Morocco around 45 years ago and has since been regarded as the last unresolved colonial conflict in Africa.
Culturescapes takes place every two years in October and November, mainly in Basel, but also in other Swiss cities. In the current edition, we will be present at three public film evenings followed by discussion rounds: On October 17, 2023, 7.30 pm, Stadtkino Basel will be showing the two short films “3 Stolen Cameras” and “Skeikima” in the presence of Mohamed Mayara. The journalist and human rights activist lives in the occupied Western Sahara and is committed to making the human rights violations by the Moroccan state visible. Following the films, he will discuss with Sylvia Valentin (development policy campaigns at terre des hommes schweiz) under the moderation of Judith Huber (SRF). “Western Sahara is complicated,” says Sylvia Valentin. “The films give a good insight into the difficult life there.”
On November 16 and 17, 2023, both at 9 p.m. The neue kino is showing short films by Mohamed Sleiman Labat. Moderated by Annette Mokler (Development Policy, Western Sahara Program Coordination at terre des hommes schweiz), the screening will be followed by a discussion. As an artist in the refugee camps, Mohamed Sleiman Labat is also familiar with the difficult life in Western Sahara, but also with the creativity that is developed there. “He also has an interest in ecological issues,” says Sylvia Valentin.
terre des hommes schweiz is also taking part in the Basel Colonial city tour on October 22, 2023, 11 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., with a station on the subject of Western Sahara. The artist Mohamed Sleiman Labat will also be present here.
Commitment in the Sahrawi refugee camp
terre des hommes schweiz is currently supporting a youth project in the refugee camps: around 174,000 Sahrawi refugees have been living in camps near the Algerian city of Tindouf since 1975. They fled Western Sahara when the territory was occupied by Morocco and are now waiting for the referendum promised in 1991 to be held. Together with our partner organization UJSARIO Smara, we organize leisure courses, promote open youth work and strengthen the cultural identity of the Sahrawi youth. Living conditions in the desert region are inhospitable and the future of the Saharawis remains uncertain. Young people in the refugee camps in particular lack prospects.
We also use information and lobbying to ensure that the situation of the Saharawis is not forgotten and that the international community fulfills its obligations. We support the Saharawis in their peaceful struggle for the right to self-determination and remind political and economic actors to comply with international law – all with the aim of offering young people prospects.
