Human Rights Human Wrongs Film Festival

Business and Human Rights

The impact of international corporations on the state of a society is greater than that of many governments. As the number of reported corporate-related human rights abuse cases increases, we use the festival films to look at what constitutes the social licence to operate a business. Companies should be held legally liable for international crimes relating to human rights abuses. Is there any effective form of accountability apart from damage done to brands and reputations?

Come and see the following films and you will leave with a multitude of thoughts, impressions and opinions about how business conducts itself abroad and how this can touch on human rights, for better or worse.

	Erling Borgen Retrospective Six films from the man who has revealed more than many Norwegian companies would have cared for. Details of all the flms can be read here. Et Lite Stykke Norge De Fattiges Plass I Skyggen av Statoil Diktatorgjeld Kringsatt av Fiender (Norwegian première) Et Tårn av Løfter
	Darwin's Nightmare 2005, 107mins, France, Hubert Sauper A community by Lake Victoria becomes devastated as their fish and livelihoods are victims of globalisation and arms trade. Oscar nominated for a good reason: this is one of the best documentaries ever made. Links The official website www.darwinsnightmare.com Read about the making of the film and the reviews and awards. Small Fish Big Fry www.sum.uio.no/research/victoriasj/index.html A very useful source of information, teaching guides and short films, together with more links to organisations working on related topics. Kisangani Diary Hubert Sauper's film from 1998 about 80,000 'lost' Hutu refugees in eastern DR Congo. www.hubertsauper.com/kisangani.html
	Slavery 2000, 90mins, UK, Kate Blewett and Brian Woods Devastating and multi-award winning film. Three stories (domestic help in UK and USA, carpets in India and the cocoa in the Ivory Coast) that expose the tip of the iceberg that is the modern slave industry. We know about fair trade, but slavery- behind our western lifestyles? Links The official website http://truevisiontv.com/slavery/index.htm Background and information on the documentary. The directors made the film becasue they wanted to make a difference. You can too after visiting the links on this website.
	China Blue 2005, 88mins, USA, Micha X Peled Shot clandestinely in China, this is a deep-access account of what both China and the international retail companies don’t want us to see – how the clothes we buy are actually made. One the best films about human rights in the world of the textile supply chain. Thought-provoking every time you put on your jeans. Links The official website: http://chinablue.docsite.org Reviews, awards, production of this film
	Power Trip 2005, 85mins, UK, Paul Devlin A powerful American corporation has bought the electricity rights in Tbilisi, Georgia. How can they balance the hardships privatisation brings to the people with a professed genuine desire to help the country rebuild itself in post-Soviet times? Is it actually possible for a corporation behave humanely in the long term? Links The official website www.powertripthemovie.com Background, reviews, outreach work, buy the DVD and more.
	Shadow of the Holy Book 2008, Finland, 90mins, Arto Halonen A slightly absurd documentary in an absurd country- Turkmenistan, ruled by an absolute dictator, where people have little basic rights, and where the Rhunama book determines who gains entrance into this oil-rich nation. StatoilHydro are opening an office in Turkmenistan next year. Should they? Links The official website www.shadowoftheholybook.com Film background and reviews, news about business in Turkmenistan.
	Total Denial 2006, 75min, Bulgaria/Italia, Milena Kaneva A court case against a major oil company UNOCAL who built a pipeline in Burma, a country where human rights abuses are all too frequent. Where are Norwegian companies and the pension fund investing their business? What ethics are taken into account? Links The official website www.totaldenialfilm.com Background information, reviews, order the DVD
	The Corporation 2004, 4x55mins, Canada, Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott. This is the film that explores the nature and spectacular rise of the dominant institution of our time- the corporation. Narrated by Naomi Klein and winner of many prizes and audience awards around the world, it is a must see for everyone interested in modern business and the people it affects. You haven't seen it? You work for a corporation, or know someone who does? See it. Links The official website www.thecorporation.com More about the film, extra resources, educational materials, buy the DVD
	Digital Cemeteries 2007, 55mins, Greece, Yorgos Avgeropoulos Where does your computer go when it dies? Rich countries choose to export the toxic waste to developing countries where billions of people are forced to choose between poisoning and poverty. The waste from our consumer lifestyles ends in the bin or at the recycling station. But what then? Are you aware of the whole story? Links The official website www.smallplanet.gr/en/hot-docs/digital-cemeteries.htm More information, buy the DVD
	The World According to Monsanto 2008, 109min, France/Canada, Marie-Monique Robin Monsanto has become one of the most controversial companies in industrial history, and little seems to have changed as a result of its reinvention as a 'life science' company working on sustainable development. Norway's pension fund has 6million NOK invested in Monsanto. The ethics panel advised against continuing this. Does nothing happen?
	Ironeaters 2008, 85min, Germany, Shaheen Dill-Riaz The workers who dismantle the oil tankers and container ships disposed of by the Western World. Exploitation and the poverty trap illustrated through stunning cinematography. Norway is behind a new treaty on transnational waste, but will anything change? Will anyone take any more responsibility? Director Shaheen Dill-Riaz will be present before and after the screening. Ingvild Jenssen from NGO Platform on Shipbreaking will also be present. Thank you for support provided by NGO Platform for Shipbreaking. Links The NGO Platform on Shipbreaking www.shipbreakingplatform.com A coalition of environmental, human and labour rights organisations to challenge the political clout of the global shipping industry.