The Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Arthouse Cinema will present GMA documentaries about women’s issues entitled “Walang Rape sa Bontok” and “Busal” on March 30. Walang Rape sa Bontok will be screened at 2:00pm followed by Busal at 5:00pm. Screenings will be held at the Tanghalang Manuel Conde (TMC).
A Question and Answer portion will take place after each screening. Resource speakers for the event are Carla Ocampo – writer and researcher for Walang Rape sa Bontok and Ely del Rosario – director and executive producer forBusal.
The GMA documentaries section includes award-winning documentaries from CineTotoo, Front Row, I-Witness, Reel Time and Reporter’s Notebook, under the GMA News and Public Affairs.
Walang Rape sa Bontok is about two Filipinas, both victims of sexual abuse in varying degrees, who yearn and search for a utopia where women can live without being sexually violated. By chance, they encounter a study by renowned anthropologist June Prill-Brett, Ph.D., which states that the Bontok of the Philippine Cordilleras has lived for eras without a term, nor concept, nor incidence, of rape. The documentary seeks to answer this question: in this world where the universality of women oppression is widely believed, how did a rape-less society ever become possible? The said film won “Pinakamahusay na Dokumentaryo” in the 38th Gawad Urian and became a finalist at the 2015 New York Festivals.
Busal was produced for the deaf victims and their families, the deaf community and their advocates, and the policymakers and the authorities, presenting the experiences of three rape victims and their struggle to attain justice. Interpreting their stories through contemporary dance, the film highlights the need for the viewers to hear their stories of silence and listen to the dance of their struggles. “Emily” and “Angela” were forced into motherhood after they were raped by people close to them – Emily by an uncle, and Angela by a neighbor. “Mariel” was 17 years old when she was abducted and forced to beg to earn money for her abductors. She was eventually able to escape, but not until after she was raped. All three cases remain unresolved. In the Philippines, it is disturbing that only one out of ten reported cases of rape against deaf women has been heard in court.
Admission is free on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, call the CCP Media Arts Division at tel. no. 832-1125 local 1705 and 1712.
