Right-Wing Leaders Condemn Director of Migration Drama as Film Premieres in Poland

Right-wing Polish leaders have intensified their criticism of the new feature film “Green Border” directed by Agnieszka Holland, accusing it of defaming Poland. The film explores the migration crisis along the border with Belarus and won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. Although most government officials in Poland have not seen the film, they have been harshly criticizing it for weeks. The film portrays Polish security officials mistreating migrants from the Middle East in the border zone of forests and swamps between Belarus and Poland.

In an unprecedented move, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Poland’s most powerful politician, called a press conference to denounce the film. He accused Holland of supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s alleged plan and accused her of “oikophobia,” meaning an aversion to one’s own homeland. Holland argues that the film does not make any collective assessment of the Polish army or uniformed services, and it is not intended to slander Poland.

Producers of the film, Agnieszka Holland and Marcin Wierzchoslawski, stated that “Green Border” shows that all humans, whether uniformed officers, refugees, or helpers, can behave differently in various situations. They emphasized that the film avoids the “black and white propaganda” surrounding migration.

The heavy-handed approach taken by Polish officials towards Holland’s film has led to accusations of attempting to censor free expression. The Interior Ministry has ordered art house cinemas in Poland to run a clip before showing “Green Border” that promotes the border guards to counter what the deputy interior minister called “untruths and distortions.”

The film, while fictional, sheds light on the ongoing crisis at the Poland-Belarus border, where migrants from the Middle East and Africa have been attempting to enter the European Union without authorization for more than two years. Polish border guards have pushed migrants back into Belarus or placed them in closed detention centers, leading to deaths in the forest and swamp areas. Poland has also constructed a steel wall to deter migrants from entering.

The film focuses on the stories of a Syrian family, a Polish border guard, and Polish activists trying to help the refugees. European Union officials have accused Belarus, a Russian ally, of manufacturing the crisis at the border as a form of “hybrid warfare” by encouraging migrants to enter the EU through the Belarus-Poland border.

Despite the controversy, the Directors Guild of America and other film industry groups have defended Holland, championing creative expression and condemning the attacks against her.

Keywords: Right-wing leaders, migration drama, film premiere, Poland, Agnieszka Holland, “Green Border,” Belarus, Polish security officials, Middle East migrants, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Vladimir Putin, oikophobia, Polish army, uniformed services, censorship, Poland-Belarus border, European Union, border guards, refugees, steel wall, hybrid warfare, Directors Guild of America.