Amnesty International and Trinity Theatre Host Q&A Event With People Behind Human Rights Case, The Mauritanian

Trinity Theatre are partnering with Tunbridge Wells Amnesty Group for a special screening of legal drama The Mauritanian, accompanied by a live Q&A session. On the panel will be Mohamedou Ould Slahi himself, who the film was based on, Nancy Hollander, the lawyer who got Slahi out of Guantanamo Bay detention camp, the film's director Kevin Macdonald and investigative journalist and Guantanamo expert, Andy Worthington. Showing for one night only on 20th March, this fascinating event will give viewers a rare and exclusive insight into the real story behind this award-winning legal drama that gripped the world.

The Mauritanian is directed by Kevin Macdonald and based on the New York Times best-selling memoir Guantánamo Diary, a first-hand account by Mohamedou Ould Slahi. This is the inspiring true story of Slahi's fight for freedom after being detained and imprisoned without charge by the U.S. Government for years. In 2001, while living in his home country Mauritania, Slahi was detained and renditioned to a black site in Jordan. He was then transported to Guantanamo Bay via Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan and held and tortured for 15 years without charge. Slahi kept a diary during this time, which remained classified for almost eight years, until it was published as Guantanamo Diary in 2015. The book became an international bestseller, translated into 25 languages and made into the film The Mauritanian in 2021. Mohamedou Ould Slahi will sit on this panel to speak about his experience.

Nancy Hollander, the criminal lawyer that successfully fought for Sahil's release, will bring her four decades of specialist experience fighting national security cases to this live panel, as well as her personal account of working on Slahi's illustrious case. A multi-award winning international lawyer, including being named among the National Law Journal's top 50 Women Litigators and the first woman president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Ms. Holland's participation in this panel will bring fascintating insights from her expertise as well as the process of releasing Slahi's story as a New York Times-bestselling book.

Investigative journalist, author and campaigner Andy Worthington will appear beside these notable speakers. Recognised as an authority on Guantanamo and the 'war on terror', Worthington has been telling the stories of men held in the prison since 2006. Campaigning for its closure and co-founding several human rights campaigns, Worthington has also partnered with WikiLeaks to release classified files from Guatanamo and written reports for the United Nations on secret detention.

The director of The Mauritanian, Kevin Macdonald, will draw out how he brought Slahi's story to the screen. An Oscar-winning feature and documentary film director, Macdonald has worked on human rights films like One Day in September, a documentary about the 1972 murder of eleven Israeli athletes, which won him the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

The Mauritanian follows Slahi (Tahar Rahim), alone and afraid, who finds allies in defense attorney Nancy Hollander (Jodie Foster) and her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley). Together they battle the U.S. government in a fight for justice that tests their commitment to the law and their client at every turn. Their controversial advocacy, along with evidence uncovered by a formidable military prosecutor, Lt. Colonel Stuart Couch (Benedict Cumberbatch), uncovers shocking truths and ultimately proves that the human spirit cannot be locked up. At the 78th Golden Globe Awards, The Mauritanian received two nominations; Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama (for Rahim), with Foster winning Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture. At the 74th British Academy Film Awards, the film received five nominations, including Best Film, Outstanding British Film, and Best Actor (for Rahim).

"Guantanamo? Is that still open?" Americans ask this all the time. And the answer is yes. It was 20 years old in January 2022. And there are still 38 men imprisoned without trial. How do we finally close this "patient zero" of the human rights abuses that began after 9/11? How can ordinary Americans be persuaded to talk civil liberties when it comes to the prisoners left? How do we discuss the legal complexities, the international self-defeat, and the humanity of "Bad Dudes"? It's too big for a slogan. You need a Hollywood blockbuster. Amnesty International.

Tickets are available priced £13 (£12 Concession price, £11 Members price, £5 Young Adults 15 - 21 price) by contacting the box office on 01892 678 678 or by visiting https://www.trinitytheatre.net/events/the-mauritanian

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