Facing the Dragon
An Afghani female parliament member fights to secure rights for women in her campaign for re-election, in a province under siege from Taliban and insurgents, while a brave female journalist covers the volatile new presidency and growing violence against women.
In a year fraught with uncertainty, filmmaker Sedika Mojadidi follows several Afghan women, within the government and the media, to tell the story of what will happen to them when the Americans leave. Through Mojadidi’s special insider access, we see the day to day realities of Afghan women on the front lines struggling to maintain the hard-won rights in a place where lawlessness, political instability, suicide bombs, and civil war are a way of life.
Dr. Nilofar Ibrahimi, a successful country doctor-turned-member of Parliament is running for re-election in her home province, Badakhshan, an area under siege by the Taliban and insurgents. She must win key votes but doesn’t have the money or the security staff to help against her rivals. Without international monitors for the election process, she is left on her own to run against warlords, drug dealers, and power brokers all threatening her life while vying to put their own candidates in her seat. Juggling motherhood and politics, she’s sent her children to live overseas while she campaigns, hoping they will be safe. Will she be able to win the election and survive escalating death threats?
After eight years of reporting, Shakila Ibrahaimkhel, a top investigative reporter, is at a personal crossroad. Her reports on violence against women and corruption within the new government have put her life in danger and made her job tenuous. Shakila wants to try to seek asylum outside of the country, but she can't leave a profession she loves. Will Shakila be able find a way out of Afghanistan or continue to tell the critical stories that put her life on the line?