Mohammed Naqvi: The Accused
It’s an understatement to say that I was shocked watching this film, that was part of the CPH:DOX Online program, that you can access until Sunday. Content-wise I don’t recall having been presented with so much hate and intolerance in 75 minutes, as this internationally financed documentary includes, rightfully, at the festival, placed in the section that includes films that are documentaries/investigative journalistic reports. ”Behead all blashphemers” is one of the first sentences you hear – later on (commenting the case of Asia Bibi, more later) some kids in the street say that they don’t need to eat anything today, “we are waiting for Bibi’s head”. Words to that effect. It’s painful just to write about it, so let me take an easy escape and quote the BBC intro:
”In Pakistan, the blasphemy law prescribes a compulsory death sentence for disrespecting Prophet Muhammad and life imprisonment for desecrating the Qur’an. This (Storyville) documentary follows the stories and fates of four people accused of blasphemy. The most famous of them is Asia Bibi, a Christian woman who claims she was falsely accused by her Muslim co-workers after a disagreement. As the elections in Pakistan loom, the country is split between those who feel the law is being misused and want to change it, and those who believe it must be preserved at any cost. Its greatest advocate, cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, goes on a mission to do just this. As his campaign heats up, he gathers millions of supporters, sympathetic to his goal, and silences anyone attempting to change the law by condemning them to death. As the world awaits the outcome of Asia Bibi’s trial, Rizvi uses the blasphemy law as a key platform to run for prime minister of Pakistan in the upcoming elections. Amidst the hysteria, those who oppose him and even his own followers become pawns in the ultimate quest for power…”
The director Naqvi said the project was “the most dangerous film” he had ever worked on. ,“When I was initially approached to possibly explore this topic, I refused,” he explained. “As I saw my country falling prey to the political ambitions of a despot, one who was using Islam as a veneer, I wanted to expose Rizvi. Here was a cleric who did not speak for me or other Muslims, he only spoke for his own political ambitions. In doing so, he was also responsible for the lynching of several minorities and Muslims, who had been falsely accused of blasphemy. He had to be stopped and this was what motivated me to make this film.”
… to expose Rizvi (PHOTO); indeed the director succeeds. I have no words to describe what I think of him.
The film also follows the work of Gulalai Ismail, human rights activist, whose NGO is closed, and who is being threatened to death for her actions. She is now in exile abroad as is Asia Bibi, whereas many other mentioned in the film have been killed or executed according to the blasphemy law.
Naqvi, the director has previously taken part in CPH:DOX winning the F:ACT Award in 2015 for the fine “Among the Believers”, jury motivation:
“For its ability to show us a country with complex political situation, for unprecedented access to part of its educational system with far reaching consequences and to the dedication the filmmakers have shown in the following the story the jury has decided to give CPH:DOX F:ACT Award to “Among the believers” by Hemal Trivedi & Mohammed Ali Nagvi. (Filmkommentaren cph:dox 2015).
UK, Pakistan, USA, 2020, 75 mins.
