The Pacific Community (SPC) invites you to attend the opening of the third Pacific Human Rights Film Festival, on Saturday 4 November 2023. From 2:00 to 6:00 pm (Fiji time) at The University of the South Pacific (USP)'s ICT Japan Pacific Multimedia Theatre in Suva, Fiji with the film: Oceans Apart: Greed, Betrayal and Pacific Island Rugby.
The event will be also livestreamed to:
- Satellite room, USP Emalus campus, Port Vila, Vanuatu (1-5 pm)
- Classroom C2, USP Samoa Campus, Apia, Samoa (3-7 pm)
1430
Opening remarks:
Dr Paula Vivili, SPC Deputy Director General
Dr Masasso Paunga, USP Deputy Vice-Chancellor
1500
Screening
Oceans Apart: Greed, Betrayal and Pacific Island Rugby
1600
Post-screening Panel
Moderator
Randall Kamea - former Fiji rugby player, publisher Teivovo Magazine
Panel
Dan Leo - former Samoan rugby player, founder of Pacific Rugby Players Welfare
Eleina McDonald - former Fijiana 15s and 7s player, Operations & Events Manager at Fijian Drua
Mere Moto - former Fijiana 15s player and S&C Coach
Lailanie Burnes - Sponsorship & Hospitality Manager at Fijian Drua; and former captain Fijiana 15s
1700
Refreshments
Background information:
At the third Pacific Human Rights Film Festival opening event on Saturday November 4th from 2pm – 6pm (Fiji time), we will be screening the documentary ‘Oceans Apart: Greed, Betrayal and Pacific Island Rugby’.
Former Samoa rugby captain Dan Leo – who the film is based on – will be leading a panel discussion that will touch on human rights and equality in rugby (and sport more widely) with an eye on the future of the women’s game as much as the men’s.
The documentary film depicts how Dan Leo sacrificed his own career to confront the exploitation of Pacific rugby players. In the film, he tackles the indissociable bond between the Pacific Islands and modern Rugby – and reveals the darker side of the sport.
The third Pacific Human Rights Film Festival, launched by SPC in 2021 and running yearly with associated partners and sponsors, has been one of Fiji's most successful film festivals in recent years. This year, it is set to expand further still.
The 2023 edition of the festival will take place from 4 November to 9 December. It features free film screenings, Q&As and extended talanoa sessions on various subjects related to human rights. Screenings will take place at the University of the South Pacific (USP)'s ICT Japan Pacific Multimedia Theatre in Suva, Fiji – with selected films screened across the Pacific region on USP campuses.
The spirit of the festival is, as ever, one of collaboration and learning, and we expect to have representatives from a variety of disciplines and professions present on the day.
The aim is to engage, educate, and inform as many people as possible on a wide range of human rights issues focused on the Pacific but with one eye on the global stage.
The theme of PHRFF2023 will be women’s and children’s rights. We also celebrate along with UNOHCHR 75 Years since the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
