To help the Colombian exile to get out of anonymity. This is the main goal of the documentary Reescribiendo el exilio (Rewriting exile), a film produced by ICIP and the Colombian Truth Commission.
The 21-minute film tells the stories of the children of Colombian exiles who live in different European countries and who, as a consequence of the Colombian armed conflict, grew up – or were born – in other territories and cultures.
The documentary was directed by Mónica Granda Restrepo, a Colombian filmmaker and journalist exiled in Switzerland.
“The documentary talks about putting words into this exile because what really happened in Colombia is that these stories are unknown and have been silenced, not only inside the country but also abroad.”
“In Colombia, no one knows that we have exiles and abroad. When I say that I am a Colombian exile, people look at me with a strange face”, said the filmmaker.
Reescribiendo el exilio collects the testimonies of Nicolás, Karim, Alejandra and Andrea and shows images recorded at the second generation meeting held by the Colombian Truth Commission in Bilbao in 2019.
“Since we were little, we’ve had parallel but different stories. It’s something that not everyone understands. During the meeting seen in the documentary, we connected as if we had known each other all our lives.”
“For many of us, it was the first time to see each other. It has been a long process and with a lot of uncertainty, but thanks to these experiences provided by the Colombian Truth Commission, we have been able to understand a little more our personal situation and the situation of the Colombian people”, explained Nicolás Forero Rodríguez, one of the youths featured in the film.
The documentary was premiered on June 5 at an event with the participation of the film’s director and several members of the second-generation group in exile.
During the presentation, the youth talked about the past, present and future of the sons and daughters of those people who had to leave Colombia forcibly.
The event was moderated by Sílvia Plana, one of the people in charge of the Memory, coexistence and reconciliation work area of the ICIP.
You can rewatch it on the Colombian Truth Commission’s YouTube channel.
Reescribiendo el exilio has been possible thanks to the collaboration of the ICIP, the Catalan Agency for Cooperation to the Development and the Colombian Truth Commission.
