Front Line Defenders

That's a great example.

It's presented across Ireland and online, and it's spearheaded by the Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality alongside Frontline Defenders.

A festival like that highlights the role of artists as active participants in promoting equality and human rights rather than just entertainers.

Right.

Um, so we're delighted to use that as a kind of a hub to celebrate the arts and human rights in, in Dublin, in Ireland, and internationally as well.

Um, so as part of, of our work doing that, we host the Irish Arts and Human Rights Festival every year in partnership with Frontline Defenders, who are a, a human rights organization who do incredible work supporting human rights defenders across the world.

Um, but we also work in partnership with a number of other organizations like, um- Uh, Fight Hate Words, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, um, Trocaire, Site Savers.

There's a whole range of organizations who put on events every year as part of this festival.

So, um, it started back in, uh, 2018, I believe.

Okay.

Uh, so Frontline Defenders were running, um, a human rights festival, and The Irish Times approached them and said, "Look, would you have any interest in us coming along and doing maybe, like, an arts day or an arts weekend as part of your festival?" And Frontline very kindly said, "No, let, let's make it an arts and human rights festival."

Mm-hmm.

It just started with a campaign of support for me as an activist.

And then Activists Without Borders, UN Special Reporter, Frontline Defenders, Other organizations I maybe never heard of started campaigning for me, just raising the case.

And it was scary because when suing me, the company said, oh, just a vulnerable woman all alone in the whole story.

And then they got... warning letters people were contacting them individually what are you doing for freedom of speech for freedom to defend the environment I mean yes opposing but hey it was I mean They had a reputation by then, by Delos.

And Mary Lawlor is an extraordinary woman who has dedicated her career to defending the rights of people around the world.

She formerly served as the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, and is a former director and chair of Amnesty International Ireland, and a founder and former director of Front Line Defenders, and that will be a very exciting conversation.

So Ciara, back to you maybe.

Tell me very quickly about some partner events we have coming up.

Yeah.

So, um, as, as you mentioned before, Front Line Defenders are the co-lead partners of the festival, and they're presenting two events this year.

Um, one is a film screening, um, called We Are Still Here.

Now, that take, takes place on Wednesday the 14th of October from 7:30 in the Lighthouse Cinema in Smithfield.