Port of memory

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2 formatsFrench, English, Spanish, Arab, PortugueseEnglish

Kamal Aljafary describes the evacuation of the inhabitants of Jaffa, a port of Palestine before 1948. He follows the traces of Salim’s family who received the order to leave their house of Ajami. Those people have become illegitimates on their own land, and are resigned, crushed, occupied within their repetitive daily gestures. ”Port of Memory” considers the absurd situation consisting in been present and absent at once. In the remains of the city of Jaffa, a man on the verge of losing his home ponders his fate. Meanwhile, two women remain locked in their homes. One finds comfort in caring for her mother before her house is taken over by an Israeli film crew. The other nurtures romantic dreams by making wedding decorations. In a nearby cafe, an old captain stands still all day, while another man flails around like a fish in a bowl. Rituals that are ways for these Palestinian men and women to keep hope alive.

• Middle East, Colonisation, Family, Exile