State of Fear - Amnesty International screening

Thu, Jan 19
8:00pm
$5

Director: PAMELA YATES, Documentary. 2005. Peru/USA. 94 min. English/
Spanish, subtitled.

How can an open society balance demands for security with democracy?
"State of Fear" dramatizes the human and societal costs a democracy
faces when it embarks on a war against terror, a war potentially
without end, all too easily exploited by unscrupulous leaders seeking
personal political gain. The film follows events in Peru, yet it
serves as a cautionary tale for a nation like the United States.
Filmmakers Pamela Yates, Paco de On and Peter Kinoy masterfully blend
personal testimony, history and archival footage to tell the story of
escalating violence in the Andean nation and how fear of terrorism
was used to undermine the democracy, making Peru a virtual
dictatorship where official corruption replaced the rule of law.
Attacks by the Shining Path guerrillas provoked a military occupation
of the countryside. Military justice replaced civil authority,
widespread abuses by the Peruvian Army went unpunished, and the
terrorism continued to spread. Nearly 70,000 civilians eventually
died at the hands of the Shining Path and the Peruvian military.

Venue:

Artists' Television Access
992 Valencia Street @ 21st
San Francisco
(415) 824-3890
http://www.atasite.org/

Additional Info: