EGYPT: WE ARE WATCHING YOU

EGYPT: WE ARE WATCHING YOU

    Price: $310.00

    Code: 2319

    Directed by Jehane Noujaim and Sherief Elkatsha
    2007, 52 minutes
    Purchase: $310 Classroom Rental: $125


    Directed by Jehane Noujaim, the Academy Award nominated filmmaker of The Square and Control Room, and Sherief Elkatsha, Egypt: We are Watching You shines a harsh spotlight on Egypt's new democracy.

    In his 2005 State of the Union address, President Bush cited Egypt as the country that would pave the way for democracy in the Middle East. That same year, President Mubarak, who's National Democratic Party has been the dominant political force for 24 years, announced that Egypt would hold multi-party presidential elections.

    Unable to sit idly by while their country is on the brink of change, three women activists start a grassroots campaign to empower the public and hold their government accountable. Called Shayfeen.com - ‘we are watching you' - they film the election process, capturing widespread violence and voter fraud, and broadcast the footage on their website. Their courageous efforts, which includes publishing a list of corrupt judges on their website, leads to an invitation to speak at the U.N. (where they receive a wink and some reassuring words from President Bush).

    Insisting that only the people can make change happen, their goal is to educate the Egyptian public on what it takes to build the most basic pillars of democracy: basic human rights, freedom of speech and the establishment of an independent judiciary. Egypt: We are Watching You illustrates the importance of ordinary citizens participating in shaping and securing their democracy.

    Subjects & Collections



    Festivals & Awards

    * Official Selection, Amsterdam Documentary Film Festival, 2008



    Reviews

    “I highly recommend this video to anyone interested in grassroots organization using media and information and communication technologies. It is professionally shot and edited and I look to see more from these directors. “ - Educational Media Reviews Online

    “A window into a world unavailable to most, Egypt: We are Watching You, is as much a depiction of a nation in jeopardy as one of a people actively pursuing progressive change. Its honesty and tentative positivity is a sobering yet inspiring look at a nation in peril.” - Feminist Review

    " Leila Menjou and Sherief Elkatsha’s inspiring documentary “Egypt: We Are Watching You” records the valiant efforts of three admirable women who successfully call their country to task for apathy and their government for corruption". - Al Jadid

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