Portuguese film festival, organized by the Permanent Mission of Brazil

Ambassador Azevêdo,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen:

The Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Mr. Michael Møller, regrets very much that he cannot be here with us today. He has asked me to present the following remarks on his behalf:

“Ambassador Azevêdo,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen:

Film is like a window into another world. It takes us to places that we cannot easily get to ourselves. If we like suspense and action more than we can accommodate in our daily lives, we go and watch a thriller or action movie. Films are like time machines back to the past for those interested in history. And films can take you to faraway places without the need to board an aircraft. Whatever our preference, the festival we are opening today, will likely have something for everyone of us. And this festival is the unique opportunity to watch movies that will most likely never be screened anywhere else in Geneva.

I sincerely thank Ambassador Azevêdo and the Permanent Mission of Brazil, the current chair of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), for taking the lead in organizing the third edition of this unique film festival. This festival would not have been possible without the generous support by the Permanent Missions of the other Portuguese-speaking countries in Geneva, in particular by Angola, Mozambique, Portugal and Timor-Leste.

The Geneva-based members of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) have made it a wonderful tradition to organize this film festival around 5 May, the International Day of the Portuguese Language and Culture. This year again, the films shown over the next two days give a glimpse into different aspects of culture and language in Lusophone countries. We will be taken on a journey from Brazil to Angola, Mozambique and Portugal with all films shown in their original Portuguese with subtitles. Did you know that Portuguese is among the most spoken native languages in the world? The Portuguese-speaking countries are home to 267 million people located across the globe. Therefore, this film festival is also a great contribution to promoting multilingualism, which, of course, is close to our hearts here at the Palais des Nations which underpins the multilateral system.

But the CPLP countries are not only special because of their language. In the CPLP framework they have joined forces to enhance economic cooperation, to tackle issues around education, health, technology, communications, culture and sports – all key areas of our 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The CPLP community has also played an outstanding role in conflict resolution and mediation among its members, a role that has repeatedly been acknowledged by our Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres, himself a native Portuguese speaker.

We are grateful to count the Lusophone countries among our strong supporters of peace, rights and well-being, here in Geneva and around the globe and we look forward to learning more about their cultures and histories over the two days of the festival.

I now I invite you to sink deeper into your cinema seats, to be taken to the Paris of the first half of the last century with the opening movie “Dear Ambassador”.

Obrigado a todos por estarem aqui conosco hoje!

Thank you all for being here with us today and please enjoy the festival!”

These were the words of the Director-General of UNOG. Let me join him in wishing you an excellent screening.