Karbala city, Karbala Governorate, 31 July 2019 - UN Human Rights conducted a short film festival on Minorities and Human Rights in Iraq with 113 participants (40 being women), including students, a member of parliament, a blind disabilities activist, a theatre director, human rights activists, film directors, police, tribal sheiks, religious sheiks, representatives of women associations and NGOs, at the Karbala Chamber of Commerce.

Panelists, including a woman who is gender adviser to the Karballa governor, a cinema director, a human rights defender, and a former governor of Karbala discussed human rights concerns raised in the short films as well as other human rights issues affecting Karbala. Human rights issues highlighted in the films included enforced disappearances, forced marriage, child marriage, identity and displacement, access to education, and the impact of corruption on rights including the right to life. It was the 35rd screening of the films, as UN Human Rights Iraq shows the best short films on minorities and human rights from the 3By3 Film Festival to audiences across Iraq.

Photos by UNAMI HRO