Paul Laverty is one of the screenwriters who have best portrayed Europe's problems and, specifically, from the United Kingdom. He has done it in the librettos he has written with Ken Loach as My name is Joe o I, Daniel Blake. He has also looked at Spain, a land he knows for his partner, the filmmaker Icíar Bollaín, and for which he has written films as The olive tree. The Laverty-Loach duo is not just cinematographic. His gaze that questions power, racism and inequality has always crossed the screen to the streets. They always position themselves, speak high and clear and do not fear the consequences.
The position of both of the barbarities committed by Israel in Palestine has been clear from the first moment. They have condemned the genocide and asked Western governments to act to prevent people from still dying in front of our noses. Each festival to which each demonstration to which they go, is the time to take the microphone and repeat it.
In one of the last manifestations, in Edinburgh, the Scottish screenwriter was arrested for several hours for wearing a shirt condemning the genocide. The police have accused him of a crime of terrorism because he considers that the motto of the “genocide in Palestine, Time to Take Action” shirt was a support for the Palestine Action Association that the British Government qualifies as a terrorist and what writers like Sally Rooney they have openly defended. A few days after the arrest, Paul Laverty attends elDiario.es And explain what happened. He does it by underlining people in Spain, a country with which he feels a special link.
How is it after everything that happened?
I'm fine. It is a bit surreal. At one point you wear a shirt that says' genocide in Palestine. It is time to act ', and the next one you are accused of a crime of terrorism, which is something very serious and has possible very serious consequences. The genocide in Palestine has been demonstrated by Amnesty International, by three UN agencies, by doctors without borders, the Human Rights report, Forensic Architecture and many other organizations. And it's time to act. It is an obligation under the Genocide Convention that entered into force in 1951 and that hundreds of countries signed, including Great Britain. Article 1 says that there is an obligation to prevent and punish genocide. And article 3, which is very interesting, says that there is an obligation not to be in collide with genocide, directly or indirectly, for not taking action. So, every word of what that shirt said is totally justifiable.
What do they say?
His argument is that I am showing my support for an organization called Palestine Action, which has been banned and considered a terrorist organization. I will not go into details because there will be trial, but it is very worrying. Amnesty International and many other jurists have said that this is a very dangerous precedent for democracy and the right to protest. During generations people have challenged the law and have broken it, and have had to face the consequences. But equating protest with terrorism when there is no intention to cause damage, kill, hurt or kidnap, extends the concept of terrorism in a very dangerous way. So I think what has happened poses very important questions about the right to protest and also about how our democracy is gradually violating.
How did he live that moment? What did they say before arresting him?
It was like a black comedy, to be honest. They said: “Come talk to us.” And I asked: “Are they arranging me, why?” And they told me: “Come talk to us.” They didn't talk to me. They didn't tell me what they accused me. They didn't say they were arresting me. And I kept asking them: “Are they arranging me for wearing this shirt?” And they didn't answer me. They took me out and put me in the back of a police truck. Then they handcuffed me, as the video shows. They took me to the police station, and there they accused me of obstruction to the arrest, something that I question. They accused me of violating article 12 of the Terrorism Law of the year 2000, which entails a possible six -month prison sentence and a fine. They accuse me of terrorism. I questioned it and checked the shirt, the words of the shirt, and I told them the same thing I have told you before about the words it puts. It was a little surreal day. They registered me thoroughly, they made me a DNA sample … it is a very, very, very serious charge. And if they condemn you for terrorism, it has consequences on your trips and in other aspects of your life.
Have you received any call or support from politicians from your country?
I did not expect this to go so viral, and many people have contacted me offering me their support, which has been overwhelming, really. It is almost impossible to respond to everyone, but support samples have been very moving, very rewarding. I am deeply grateful to everyone, and in particular the support of Spain. It has been … It has moved me a lot and has honored me a lot, because many people have contacted me, old friends and contacts, but also writers, directors, producers, and even the San Sebastian Film Festival has sent me a charming message.
My detention is a very dangerous precedent for democracy and the right of protest
Paul Laverty
— Screenwriter
So, through you, I would like to address common people and tell you that thank you very much. I think this shows that, on the street, people are as dismayed as me by barbarism and genocide that is happening before our eyes. People feel a real frustration. I understand, by very good Spanish journalists, that your government has issued important statements against Israel, but also that weapons are still sent from Spain, and that is really shameful. Absolutely shameful. They must ensure that their actions are in line with their convictions, because if they allow the export of weapons, that is collusion with genocide and also great hypocrisy. So they have to stop that.
Is there a racial component in what is happening? One thinks about the reaction of Western governments after the invasion of Russia to Ukraine and is completely different.
Yes. Total and absolute hypocrisy is evident. Obviously, Palestinian lives are considered insignificant and that is deep racism. It is something that is also seen in the language of Israeli leaders when they are called animals. That is always the first step towards genocide. What is very interesting is that there are Israeli scholars of the Holocaust who are openly saying that this is a genocide. The next stage of the genocide is to deny it. So we have an urgent obligation to act now with all possible forces.
Do you think that Gaza genocide is showing the worst version of many Western governments?
Absolutely. I don't think I had seen anything the same in my life. I am very happy that you have asked that question. Look, the Netanyahu government finance minister from 2019 to 2022, Smotrich, who has been in the heart of the cabinet, making the most important decisions, he said and quoted: “We are leaving Gaza as a lot of debris. It is a total destruction.” This is not precedents. It is absolutely chilling, because they are not only committing a genocide before our eyes, but they are making fun of the world with their impunity.
This is so. And nobody stops them. They have the total support of the United States, they are giving them 22,000 million, and European countries still do not exert sufficient pressure on Netanyahu and their government. Western governments, clearly USA, but in particular our government in the United Kingdom, are in collide with genocide. That is why I believe that those words of Smotrich resonate in my ears these days of terrifying barbarism, every morning when I hear the number of people killed in the last 24 hours. It is unforgivable, but I think consciousness is in the streets, which leads me again to the importance of protecting our space to protest.
He has mentioned the support of the San Sebastián Festival, right now the Venice Mostra is being held and a letter has been signed, among the signatories is Ken Loach, asking the contest to condemn the genocide, why is this type of gestures of artists or festivals important?
It is very important, but it makes no sense to condemn it unless we influence power and that is where an effort has to be made. It is starting to happen. The problem is that it is taking a long time to go through the judicial system. What has happened with the International Criminal Court is that the US has tried to undermine it and Mosad has threatened its staff. They are behaving like the mafia. There are no other words.
The International Court of Justice has positioned itself on not occupying the West Bank and guaranteeing the safety of citizens and food and has been ignored. Decisions and dates have been postponed. So we have to trust that the executives of each country immediately act to implement a change to Israel. It is very difficult to do it when the US is being so despicable, but Europe could lead the way. The British government, the Spanish, could call an emergency meeting this night and decide that they do not export more weapons to Israel. They could decide immediately and that does not stop the war immediately, but it would have a great impact and send an important message to Netanyahu. If European countries begin to do it now, they would be in their hands. They should be ashamed for not doing it immediately.
USA and Israel are behaving like the mafia with the International Criminal Court
Paul Laverty
— Screenwriter
As an artist, have you thought about what you can do?, In writing a script?
I am convinced that over time we will see an artistic reaction to this, in various ways, either from music, art, theater or cinema, because what we have seen is so chilling and so wild that many people will do everything possible to unravel and find a way of understanding it. But the important thing is now to stop it, because they kill more than 100 people a day. It is a brutality. I've never seen anything like that in my life. It's like a horror movie before our eyes every day.
Do you see a high on fire or, today, it seems impossible?
Theoretically it is possible, but Israel has made it very clear. Former Minister Smotrich has made it very clear, they intend to commit a genocide, therefore, they are clearly trying to kill the Palestinians or make their lives so miserable so that they are forced to move. That is a genocide and ethnic cleaning. And now they have the support of the United States, but also with the silence and complicity of Western governments, some particularly, such as Germany. It is absolutely negligible what they have done in Germany and the way they are repressing protesters. I do not know if you have seen the recent images of an Irish young woman to which the Berlin police punch her nose and then break her arm. This is the level of brutality we have. So, in a strange way, Gaza is connected to all of us, because what we are living is a repression of dissent in the West. We have to realize the complexity of the political struggle, both there and here.
