Reporters Against Power, Ep. 3 - Colombia

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In this episode, Fidan Ekiz visits Henry Ramirez, a local journalist in the Colombian port city of Buenaventura. Its harbor attracts powerful criminals and drug smugglers, making it one of the most violent cities in Colombia. Henry has disclosed the existence of “casas de pique” slaughterhouses where paramilitary gang members chopped people up alive. His story was picked up internationally and caused the army to enter Buenaventura to enforce public order. But Buenaventura is still being controlled by criminal gangs, and Henry is one of the few journalists courageous enough to cover the sensitive issue of crime.

Colombia is a weak state. In some regions, criminals are almost in complete control of the government. Journalists are virtually the only people to uncover the corruption and crime. In doing so they become the target of criminal gangs. The central government is not able to tot put up an effective fight against these criminals. They merely provide journalists under threat with bodyguards and bulletproof vests.

Fidan also visits Gonzalo Guillen, an highly acclaimed investigative journalist who lives alone at a secret address, together with 9 bodyguards, and Ginna Morelo who fled to Colombia’s capital city of Bogota after the entire family of one of her sources was murdered.

Series Description:

A daughter of Turkish immigrants in The Netherlands, Fidan Ekiz visits the courageous people that practice journalism under dictatorship or oppression and becomes a part of their adventurous daily life. After being a news correspondent in Turkey for some years, Fidan returns to The Netherlands and starts making documentaries. At age of 38 she tries to redefine the importance of journalism.

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Main credits

Schaap, Kees (film director)
Oostrom, Anja van (film producer)
Ekiz, Fidan (host)

Other credits

Cinematography, Jan Pieter Tuinstra; editing, J.P. Luijsterburg.

MARC Record See Worldcat record

Keywords

First Hand Films,Documentary,Film,The Netherlands,Reporters Against Power,Kees Schaap,Anja van Oostrom,Joanne Becker,2016,Journalism,Fidan Ekiz,Freedom of Speach,Free Press,Democracy,Colombia,Turkey,Uganda,Russia,Burma,Hong Kong; "Reporters Against Power, Ep. 3 - Colombia"; First Hand Films; documentary; doc; series;

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(gentle instrumental music)

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- The people from
the neighborhood,

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they're always scared.

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They're frightened to
identify the criminals.

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- These gang wars, are
they related to drugs?

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(gentle instrumental music)

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Congratulations.

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(singing in foreign language)

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(lively instrumental music)

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- Do you feel uncomfortable
being filmed like this

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in your neighborhood?

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- We're drawing attention.

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We can go.

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(speaking in foreign language)

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- If they wouldn't be here,

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what would they have done?

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- Made us walk into there?

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How?

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Why were they dismembered?

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Why were they chopped
off like that?

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- Do you believe
in stuff like that?

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- Who's saying what?

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I don't understand.

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Okay, he took the whole family

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or the whole neighborhood.

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What is he so worried about?

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- Please ask him if
he's afraid of violence

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to happen in the neighborhood.

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- I can use this.

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It was on my head all day.

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Nora, thank you for telling me.

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- I want to ask you something

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if you have time.

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You're busy, I know, but about
this guy with the red shirt

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in the humanitarian zone,

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I mean, as a journalist,
you investigate things

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and this is a pretty safe zone.

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And now there is someone who
was trying to stir things up.

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Don't you want to investigate,

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or don't you want to know?

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- Yeah.

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What interests me is that
I think, I'm not sure,

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it looks like you don't
want to interfere.

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You want to stay out of
this whole messy thing.

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Is that right?

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- But why?

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I'm trying to understand.

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You covered these
whole big stories

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about people getting chopped.

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And you get death threats.

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We saw you on the death list.

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And this specific topic
you don't want to touch.

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- How many journalists get
security, have bodyguards?

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- The costs must be very high.

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Do you know how much?

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- And why don't they?

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Are they afraid?

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Are they helpless?
- No.

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- What is it?

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- Are there plans to cut the
security budget in future?

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So you live with
nine bodyguards?

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- How is it possible that
a governor like Kiko Gomez

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can just do what he's doing?

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- Being a journalist, is
it worth to live like this?

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- If you don't have any
bodyguards to protect you,

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what does it mean for you?

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- How is it to live like that,

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to be protected 24/7?

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- Do you feel happy?

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- I really feel sad about
what's happening to you

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and the way you have to live

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because I think you should
be respected as a journalist

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and not live like
this, imprisoned.

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I just think where would you,

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when would you say this is
really too much, too dangerous,

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I will draw the line here?

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Do you have a limit?

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(somber instrumental music)

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You knew how dangerous Colombia
is for journalists, right?

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- [Fidan] What's your worst
nightmare, about what?

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- You said one source was
killed because of your story.

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- [Fidan] Do you
feel responsible?

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- Let's have some tea, a break.

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(gentle instrumental music)

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Why are you following
Henry today?

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- So Henry's good?

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- Good journalist.

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(somber instrumental music)

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- How do you say condolences?

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- [Translator] You can say

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(speaks in foreign language)

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or you can say

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(speaks in foreign language)

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- Let's just let
them rest a bit.

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- [Fidan] You find
this more difficult

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than covering the story
about dismemberments?

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(speaking in foreign language)

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- [Fidan] You're afraid that
something might happen to him?

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- And for yourself
and your kids?

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- [Fidan] What does it mean?

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- [Fidan] You know
Henry better than I do.

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When he's laughing,
is he uncomfortable?

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- Yes.
- I thought so.

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Would you consider
to be a journalist?

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(somber instrumental music)

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- In the beginning I thought
you don't really have a purpose

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with your journalism.

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You make photos and you leave,

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and you cover the
news and you leave.

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You don't really investigate.

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That's what I thought
in the beginning.

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And later on, I changed my mind.

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I thought, he's really
thinking about all of this

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and he knows what to
touch, what not to touch.

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- So I think I finally
figured you out.

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I think you're an idealist.

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- I think you really
have this purpose

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to make Buenaventura safe.