NCHR efforts in support to Ramadan drama that promotes principles of human rights

Within the framework of the important role that drama plays in shaping public awareness as well as in supporting the principles of human rights, the National Council for Human Rights evaluates annually the drama featured in the month of Ramadan, and honors post Ramadan the work that aim to support and consolidate human rights values in Egyptian society within the context of the international conventions on human rights that Egypt has signed and ratified.

This activity dates back to 2011, the Cultural Rights Committee of the Council selects intellectual figures specialists in the fields of art criticism, directing and acting, in order to watch and judge drama featured in Ramadan, according to a set of criteria that balance between human rights values and aesthetic artistic aspects. This annual tradition, which has been going on for twelve years, confirms the conviction that raising awareness about the culture of human rights is a shared responsibility between the Ministries of Culture and Education, the National Councils, foremost of which is the National Council for Human Rights.

It also confirms the conviction that drama in general and television drama in particular, and Ramadan drama in a more specific way, have a great impact on the emotional and behavioral levels, due to their distance from direct guiding messages. It presents the values that need to be consolidated in a human template that touches the lives of citizens. In parallel with this societal impact of drama, the Council is convinced that drama has a role to play in highlighting rights that require legislative intervention or public policies support, and thus drama is a catalyst for change at the popular and official levels.

The National Council for Human Rights has been honoring the winning Ramadan drama in an annual ceremony to which the authors, producers, directors and actors are invited, as well as a number of public figures concerned with the human rights file. This celebration is held post the Holly Month as an incentive to produce more works of art that deepen human rights values .