‘Zabana!’ screens in celebration of Africa Day

AS part of its regular screening of contemporary, groundbreaking screen productions, AfricAvenir is commemorating Africa Day with the screening of ‘Zabana!’ on Saturday, 28 May at 19h00 at the Goethe Institute.

‘Zabana!’ was Algeria’s official entry to the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Film in 2013.

On the morning of 19 May 1956, 30 year old Ahmed Zabana, an Algerian militant associated with the Front de Lib eacute;ration Nationale (FLN), was executed in Algiers by the French colonial administration as an example and a warning to other freedom fighters.

The liberation of the African continent, and founding of the OAU/AU is unthinkable without the anti colonial struggle of the Algerian people and the contribution of its martyrs like Zabana.

Dragged into the prison courtyard, Zabana had his hands tied and was forced to kneel and lodge his neck inside the guillotine. Twice, the blade stopped in mid descent, until the third attempt took his life. Zabana’s execution – the first of many that day – galvanised the capital city and made Zabana into a national hero. Six months later, the Battle of Algiers erupted, and the country was launched onto the path that would eventually see Algeria throw off its colonial yoke.

‘Zabana!’ is a stunning and moving film about the power of both individual and collective will in resistance and liberation movements, with a strong focus on political imprisonment in anti colonial struggle. This film is less of a history lesson or timeline of the Algerian war for independence than it is a glimpse into the raw sacrifice that liberation often entails, for those we remember and those we do not.

For more information on the screening, contact Hans Christian Mahnke on 0855630949 or africavenir.whk@googlemail.com

Entrance to the screening is N$40.