Yemeni film on 'Day of Dignity' nominated for Oscar
The film "Karama Has No Walls" documents Yemen's March 18, 2011, "Day of Dignity," when military forces of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh opened fire on civilian protesters.
If one only has 26 minutes to understand the tragedy of Yemen that has lasted for the past three years, one should watch “Karama Has No Walls.” Directed and produced by Yemeni-Scottish filmmaker Sara Ishaq, the film was recently nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary short film.
Ishaq's film tells the story of March 18, 2011, when military forces, under former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, shot at civilian protesters, killing more than 40 peaceful protesters and injuring more than a hundred others. The day has become known as the Karama massacre, or "Day of Dignity" (karama means "dignity" in Arabic).
The film documents the events of that day in Yemen's capital Sanaa that began just after Friday prayer.
A few days before, Saleh’s forces had built a wall at the entrance of one of the city's squares — later dubbed Change Square — to prevent the increasing number of revolutionary youths from gathering in the square to protest. After Friday prayer, military snipers started shooting protesters from buildings behind the wall.
