Support Actor/Filmmaker Mohammed Bakri

Mohammad Bakri, a Palestinian citizen of Israel and one of the country’s most prominent actors and directors, has been fighting for his democratic right to free expression since 2002 when he made the world-famous film Jenin Jenin. Shortly after the Israeli military attacked a refugee camp in Jenin, banning reporters and human rights observers “for safety” reasons, Bakri snuck in and interviewed the survivors and asked them to tell their stories from their perspective.

The government of Israel censored his film for 2 years, and in a remarkable move for a government, recently joined a group of Israeli soldiers in an ongoing lawsuit against him for defamation.

Please join the filmmakers listed below in calling for the nomination of Bakri for the first Free Speech Bear Award at the 2010 Berlinale to call attention to his fight for free expression.

The petition reads:

I support the nomination of Mohammad Bakri for the 1st annual Golden Bear Award for Free Speech to be awarded on February 19 at the 2010 Berlin International Film Festival. May this award serve as a reminder that the government of Israel cannot silence artists with impunity.