Content note: sexual violence, death
August marked the tenth anniversary of the genocide committed by the so-called ‘Islamic State’ against the Yazidis. Thousands of Yazidis were systematically killed, enslaved and displaced. Since then, the religious minority has been struggling with the consequences of the terror. Four sibling pairs tell their stories before the camera of activist and documentary film-maker Düzen Tekkal from HÁWAR.help. Together with co-director David Körzdörfer, Tekkal accompanies the protagonists through their lives in Germany and Iraq. Talking with Annalena Baerbock, Tekkal emphasises the measures needed today to protect the Yazidis, including the actions required from the German side.
- Followed by a panel: After the screening on 7 October, there will be a panel discussion with director Düzen Tekkal, the protagonists Layla Mirza and Tahsin Mirza, as well as expert Natalie von Wistinghausen and Clara Bünger (Member of the German Bundestag). The panel will be moderated by journalist Shila Behjat.
- Followed by Q&A: At the school screening on 8 October, director David Körzdörfer will be present.
BÊMAL - HEIMATLOS - TEASER
Düzen Tekkal
Düzen Tekkal
Düzen Tekkal is an author, journalist, filmmaker, and human rights activist. Together with her sisters, she founded the human rights organisation HÁWAR.help e.V., which is primarily engaged in projects for girls and women in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Germany. In her book and the educational movement of the same name, German Dream, she advocates for a values-based Germany and against extremism and hostility towards people.
Layla Mirza
Layla Mirza
Layla Mirza and her brother Tahsin have been living in Germany for 8 years. Their escape from Iraq via the Mediterranean Sea eventually brought them to North Rhine-Westphalia in 2016. After completing her vocational training, Layla increasingly focused on modelling, which she hopes to pursue full-time in the future. Through this, she aims to inspire other young women to fight for their dreams.
Tahsin Mirza
Tahsin Mirza
Tahsin Mirza and his sister Layla have been living in Germany for 8 years. Their escape from Iraq via the Mediterranean Sea eventually brought them to North Rhine-Westphalia in 2016. Today, Tahsin works as a drama educator and comedian.
Natalie von Wistinghausen
Natalie von Wistinghausen
As a specialist lawyer in criminal law, her focus is on the defence and victim representation in international criminal proceedings. She represents, among others, Yazidi co-plaintiffs in several cases against alleged "ISIS" members before German higher regional courts. She has been included in the list of lawyers for the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), and the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals
Clara Bünger
Clara Bünger
Clara Bünger, born in Oldenburg, grew up in Freiberg (Saxony). She studied law at the University of Leipzig, followed by positions in law firms in Tel Aviv and Singapore, at the German Foreign Office, and at the ECCHR. In 2016, she co-founded the German-Greek association Equal Rights Beyond Borders, which provides legal advice to refugees. Since 2022, she has been a member of the Bundestag and the spokesperson for refugee and legal policy for Die Linke.
Shila Behjat
Shila Behjat
Shila Behjat is a journalist and author. She is the daughter of an Iranian father and a German mother, and she belongs to the Bahá'í religious minority, which is severely persecuted in Iran. Shila Behjat studied law, among other subjects, in Paris and is currently working as a cultural editor at arte.
Schoolscreening - Registration here.
Düzen Tekkal
Düzen Tekkal
Düzen Tekkal is an author, journalist, filmmaker, and human rights activist. Together with her sisters, she founded the human rights organisation HÁWAR.help e.V., which is primarily engaged in projects for girls and women in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Germany. In her book and the educational movement of the same name, German Dream, she advocates for a values-based Germany and against extremism and hostility towards people.
Layla Mirza
Layla Mirza
Layla Mirza and her brother Tahsin have been living in Germany for 8 years. Their escape from Iraq via the Mediterranean Sea eventually brought them to North Rhine-Westphalia in 2016. After completing her vocational training, Layla increasingly focused on modelling, which she hopes to pursue full-time in the future. Through this, she aims to inspire other young women to fight for their dreams.
Tahsin Mirza
Tahsin Mirza
Tahsin Mirza and his sister Layla have been living in Germany for 8 years. Their escape from Iraq via the Mediterranean Sea eventually brought them to North Rhine-Westphalia in 2016. Today, Tahsin works as a drama educator and comedian.
Natalie von Wistinghausen
Natalie von Wistinghausen
As a specialist lawyer in criminal law, her focus is on the defence and victim representation in international criminal proceedings. She represents, among others, Yazidi co-plaintiffs in several cases against alleged "ISIS" members before German higher regional courts. She has been included in the list of lawyers for the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC), the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), and the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals
Clara Bünger
Clara Bünger
Clara Bünger, born in Oldenburg, grew up in Freiberg (Saxony). She studied law at the University of Leipzig, followed by positions in law firms in Tel Aviv and Singapore, at the German Foreign Office, and at the ECCHR. In 2016, she co-founded the German-Greek association Equal Rights Beyond Borders, which provides legal advice to refugees. Since 2022, she has been a member of the Bundestag and the spokesperson for refugee and legal policy for Die Linke.
Shila Behjat
Shila Behjat
Shila Behjat is a journalist and author. She is the daughter of an Iranian father and a German mother, and she belongs to the Bahá'í religious minority, which is severely persecuted in Iran. Shila Behjat studied law, among other subjects, in Paris and is currently working as a cultural editor at arte.
