Abortion of the Soul: Reproductive Rights in Syria

Abortion of the Soul

Taken by the story of a friend who went through a painful abortion experience, filmmaker Bahraa Hijazi examines the taboo world of reproductive rights in Syrian society. Through dramatic interviews, she documents the stories of young Syrian women struggling through shame, social isolation, and depression as they try to exert control over their own bodies and lives. With their faces hidden in the shadows, the interviewees speak of harrowing encounters with their families, the law, and corrupt doctors as well as the personal trauma that results.

But that is just the beginning. Hijazi, then weaves in stories of young males facing torture and humiliation by the Syrian government during the Syrian uprising and the post-traumatic stress faced by many who are waging the fight for a more representative society. What transpires is a call to arms for a revolution of the soul in modern Syria. A revolution in which political freedom and the freedom of the individual regardless of gender are to be cherished and the old patriarchal concepts are to be aborted. Without a formal charge, Bahraa was arrested in Damascus at her university on 2nd February 2012 and held for 53 days. Many suspect that it is partly due to the controversial topic of her accomplished documentary.

Directed by Bahraa Hijazi
Syria | 32 minutes | 2013 | Arabic with English subtitles

INST DVD: $275
INST DVD + DSL: $475
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