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Darfur is a nightmare.
The western area of Sudan, Africa, which is the size of France, is home to about six million people.
As many as 200,000 people have been killed and another 2.5 million displaced.
That's where the documentary “Darfur Now” begins.
Director Ted Braun tackles genocide in Darfur, showing the perspectives of six people regarding the situation. They are Dr. Luis Moreno-Ocampo, an Argentine native serving as the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court at The Hague, where he investigates Sudanese leaders as war criminals; Adam Sterling, the director of the Sudan Divestment Task Force, which seeks to get U.S. states to divest funds in Sudan; Ecuadorian Pablo Recalde, head of the World Food Program in West Darfur, who faces constant danger trying to get food to the needy people in the region; Hejewa Adam, who has joined an armed rebel group to defend the Fur people and fight the Janjaweed and government forces (the Janjaweed, which translates as “devils on horseback,” are bands of militia who terrorize villagers in Darfur); Ahmed Mohammed Abakar, who fled his village and who now is the leader at a refugee camp in Hamadea, where about 50,000 displaced people live; and actors Don Cheadle and George Clooney, who use their star power to effect change in policies in places like China and Egypt, two countries with deep ties to Sudan.
Each person is trying to end the conflict in Darfur in his or her own way and both the passion and compassion of the six comes through clearly.
The film was begun with a grant from Steven Spielberg's Righteous Persons Foundation.
“Darfur Now,” which only brought in about $64,000 at the box office, is informative and brings the audience into the region right away.
Braun lets the camera linger on people who talk about atrocities they have suffered or have witnessed.
One thing the director should be praised for is not relying on shocking, brutal images to get the point across. Where another may have relied on disaster pornography, Braun takes the high road and allows sobbing or angry people tell their stories without the gore.
And while “Darfur Now” does devote some time to representatives of the Sudanese government ‚ which claims it is fighting rebel forces in Darfur and blames the refugee problem on drought ‚ it is clear the filmmaker believes what is happening is genocide.
This film goes a long way at examining man's inhumanity to man and terror tactics employed by those in power.
It is also a testament to the power of the human spirit, the ability of individuals to make change happen for the good.
“Darfur Now” is available on DVD.
The author can be reached at [email protected]
