Dear Passengers of Law and Cinema,
We are so happy to accomplish the III. International Crime and Punishment Film Festival which brings together the world of academia and cinema with the ideal of having justice for everyone and building a more just world. This year academics, NGO representatives, public officials and participants from the world of cinema will talk on Juvenile Justice. While addressing the legal and socio-economic aspects of the main theme, we will also try to understand the problem and find solutions from the perspective of cinema, being a true reflection of society.
The First International Crime and Punishment Film Festival had the main theme as -The Period of Coups and Confronting the Past- and addressed an important concept perverting the course of justice. Throughout the Festival, we watched films presenting the great sufferings caused by the Coups and also discussed with the creators of those films and academics what should be done to prevent it from happening again.
Gathering great attention in Turkish and International Media in its first year, our Festival addressed one of the major problems of the mankind in the second year. We have chosen the subject -Violence and Discrimination against Women- as our main theme because in a world where violence and discrimination against women exists, we believe that other types of violence and discrimination cannot be prevented as well. We also believe that in a society where women’s rights have not become a reality, the improvement of human rights and democracy, in general, will not be possible.
During the third year of our Festival, we wanted to address a critical and contemporary issue facing our country and the world. Therefore the main theme of our Festival was determined as -Juvenile Justice- covering wide range of issues including the causes of juvenile delinquency, implementation of judiciary measures as well as problems associated with the protective systems of juveniles.
The magnitude of the problem in our society is well-known. However, before we find effective ways to tackle this societal problem, a number of issues need to be addressed first. The most important question to be answers relates to why children commit acts of crime? There are undoubtedly numerous factors that contribute to the development of juvenile crime, including biological, psychological and social. A second issue relates to the experiences of juvenile offenders through the stages of criminal justice system. According to the judicial statistics on the number of cases filed against children at the criminal courts, around 200. 000 children enter the criminal justice system as defendants every year. As suspects, defendants and convicted offenders, these children face a number of situations while they are processed through the system by the police, the courts and the correctional agencies. Does the judicial system help reintegrate these children into the society or instead lead to psychological detrimental outcomes in children by labeling and stigmatizing them? Equally important, are all the sanctions in the form of punishment and other judicial processes successful in preventing recidivism and do they keep children away from crime?
As in last year, our talks and discussions will be addressing the socio-economic and economic aspects of the main theme. We will try to understand the problems of child delinquency and juvenile justice and find solutions from the perspective of law and cinema. Within the academic program which will last for five days, academics, NGO representatives, activists, writers, cinema artists and press members will have the opportunity to express their ideas.
We are in the opinion that, to detect the problems and find solutions whether in the legal or practicing manner can be possible by comparing this with the other countries. For this reason, I would like to thank those who come from other countries and from Turkey to present and those who translated these presentations into Turkish and those who contributed to publication.
Best regards.
