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Ouagadougou – most film festivals can provide entertainment with some introspection.
The week-long FESPACO, which opened Saturday in the violence-torn capital of Burkina Faso, not only offered a symbol of hope and endurance: The West African nation has killed thousands amid years of political conflict and Islamic extremist attacks , with nearly 2 million people displaced, it was never canceled.
“We only have FESPACO left to stop us from thinking about what’s going on,” said Maimouna Ndiaye, a Burkina Faso actress who has competed four times in this year’s competition. “This is an event that cannot be canceled under any circumstances.”
The country’s troubles have grown since the last Ouagadougou Biennale. Successive governments have failed to stem extremist violence, sparking two military coups last year, with each junta leader promising security — with little success.
At least 70 soldiers were killed in two attacks in the Sahel region of Burkina Faso earlier this month. The fighting has also sown discord among once peaceful populations, pitting communities and races against one another.
Still, more than 15,000 people, including film luminaries from Nigeria, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire, are expected to attend FESPACO, Africa’s largest film festival, launched in 1969, in Ouagadougou.
Some 1,300 films were submitted for consideration and 100 were selected for the competition from 35 African countries and diasporas, including films from the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Nearly half of the directors in this year’s fiction competition are women.
Among them is Burkina Faso director and producer Apolline Traore, whose film “Sira” – considered a frontrunner in this year’s competition – symbolizes the suffering of many Burkina Faso people. It tells the story of a woman’s struggle to survive after being kidnapped by jihadists in the Sahel as her fiancé tries to find her.
Still, Traore is optimistic about her country’s prospects.
“The world paints Burkina Faso as a red country. It’s dangerous to come to my country, as they say,” she told the AP. “We might be a little bit broken, but we’re not down.
Government officials said they had stepped up security measures and would ensure the safety of festivalgoers.
At a time when anti-French sentiment is running high in Burkina Faso, many hope FESPACO will help foster domestic unity and strengthen ties with other countries.
The European Union’s ambassador to Burkina Faso, Wolfram Vetter, called the festival “an important contribution to peace and reconciliation in Burkina Faso and beyond.”
The European Union is the largest funder of the event after the government of Burkina Faso, having contributed around €250,000 ($265,000).
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. all rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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