Amnesty International Children’s Human Rights Network and Whitley Bay Film Festival join forces

Amnesty International Children’s Human Rights Network and Whitley Bay Film Festival are teaming up to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the campaign for the UK to sign up to Optional Protocol 3 of the Convention.

Optional Protocol 3 provides for complaints to be made directly to the Committee on the Rights of the Child when any right guaranteed by the Convention on the Rights of the Child has been violated. All the films to be shown should be of interest to those concerned about the rights of children and how we can best realise these as a global community.

19 August, 6pm - Shatila Theatre at the Northumbria Language School, Whitley Bay:
This documentary plots the unique journey from Shatila Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut through the splendours of such UK concert halls as Sage Gateshead for a group of Palestinian young people performing a play specially written for them on the camp by the English author, Peter Mortimer.

We are lucky to have Pete Mortimer speaking at this event as well as the Amnesty International UK Country Coordinator for Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Lebanon, Garry Ettle.

23 August, 7.30pm - Children of War at the Tyne Theatre Opera House:
Filmed in the war-zone of northern Uganda over a period of three years by Director Bryan Single. 'Children of War' follows a group of former child soldiers as they escape the battlefield, enter a rehabilitation centre, and undergo a process of trauma therapy and emotional healing.

The film will be followed by a panel discussion and contributions from Amnesty International UK.

30 August, 8pm – A selection of short films about children’s rights at Jam Jar Cinema.

Tickets are available now from the Film Festival website; www.whitleybayfilmfestival.co.uk