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"In Any Conflict, Truth Is the First Victim"

20 March 2017

The conflict in Syria has been ongoing for six years and is now the worst humanitarian crisis in the last five decades. The documentary “The War Show” illuminates how peaceful uprisings were met with massive violence, and how extremism grew and escalated. But it is also a documentary about humanity. It is a documentary about love, friendship and the will to stand up against injustice. It is a documentary about the strength of the Syrian people.

In “The War Show” we follow radio host Obaidah Zytoon and her friends when they join the protests against Bashar Al-Assad’s regime in Syria in 2011. Zytoon films her friends, their life and how they take part in the uprisings, demonstrations and daily struggle to challenge the power monopoly of the regime.

Wherever they go, Zytoon always brings her camera. She records everything that happens and her camera becomes a tool in the attempt to bring democracy to Syria. As she says: “The regime’s biggest fear was those who held cameras.”

The young people we follow in the documentary have fun. They laugh, play around, go to the beach, and live their lives like young people do. They are aware of the danger of being part of the civil and political opposition, but at the same time they believe in a good life and that a good future is possible. They believe in a peaceful future without the regime.

The conversations between the friends give an insight into some of the dilemmas activists working for a democratic society might face. When is the protest meaningful? When do you need to compromise? When do you resist even if you risk losing your life?

When Peace is Met by Violence

The documentary is divided into seven chapters: Revolution; Suppression; Resistance; Siege; Memories; Frontline; and Extremism. By narrating the film like this, Zytoon shows how the situation in Syria spins out of control. What started with peaceful demonstrations and a common desire for reforms turns into a violent conflict where extremist groups can develop and proliferate.

Though the uprisings were peaceful and unarmed, the regime met the protesters with a high level of violence. “Demonstrations turned into funerals,” Zytoon says at one point. The violence combined with rising numbers of detained and arrested people creates tension and angers the population. With her camera, Zytoon tries to capture the frustration that settles in the Syrian people, while at the same time capturing the ongoing attempts to bring peace and democracy to the country. No matter the obstacles, the Syrian people are determined not to give up.

Zytoon brings her camera to areas where the conflict has been really damaging. Like in the city of Homs, where a siege imposed by the government has starved and devastated the inhabitants. Whenever people see her camera they run to her and show her wounds from torture, captivity and violent interrogations. Everyone wants to tell their own stories of horror to the camera. And they want to share that they will keep protesting and fighting until the regime is overthrown.

The Strength of the Syrian People

“The War Show” was screened at the FIFDH Festival in Geneva, and the organisers invited Zytoon to come to the festival and participate in the event. She kindly declined the invitation, because she said she could not watch the film again. She could not relive the memories. “The War Show” documents many of the horrors the regime has imposed on its people. There are very disturbing images and the faiths of some of Zytoon’s friends are terrible and heartbreaking.

But as Annie Sparrow, doctor and health activist working in Syria, said after the screening of the film, what makes this documentary so strong and moving is that it is not just footages of death, violence and explosions. The documentary is a testament to the humanity still lingering in Syria.

Sparrow has worked in conflict and war zones all over the world. But according to her, the case of Syria is unique: “I can’t think of another war where I’ve worked, where I’ve seen this kind of strength,” Annie Sparrow said. According to her, the documentary is a film about life. And it shows the world that there is still more life in Syria than death.

“Syrians didn’t go to the streets in 2011 to die. They went to the streets to live,” she said.

”The War Show”, Directed by Obaidah Zytoon and Andreas Dalsgaard, 2016, 100 minutes.

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Matt Mahmoudi

Matt Mahmoudi (he/him) is a lecturer, researcher, and organizer. He’s been leading the “Ban the Scan” campaign, Amnesty International’s research and advocacy efforts on banning facial recognition technologies and exposing their uses against racialized communities, from New York City to the occupied Palestinian territories.

Berit Aasen

Europe Alternate Regional Representative

Berit Aasen is a sociologist by training and has worked at the OsloMet Metropolitan University on Oslo. She has 40 years of experience in research and consultancy in development studies, including women, peace, and security, and in later years in asylum and refugee studies. Berit Aasen joined WILPF Norway five years ago. She is an alternate member of the National Board of WILPF Norway, and representing WILPF Norway in the UN Association of Norway, the Norwegian 1325 network and the Norwegian Women’s Lobby. Berit Aasen has been active in the WILPF European Liaison group and is committed to strengthening WILPF sections and membership both in Europe and relations across continents.

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

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Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

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WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.