(Zaman Al Wasl)- Within a short period after he arrived in Denmark, Syrian journalist Daham Alasaad managed to integrate into Danish society without forgetting his roots, due to his mastery of the English language, as he used to work as a tourist guide before his immigration.
Alasaad, 31, began his career working in several newspapers and magazines. He has produced films on various topics about the Middle East for French and European TVs. His documentary “A One-Way Ticket” won the 2019 Migration Media Award (MMA) presented by the European Union.
Alasaad also made a film about Rukban camp titled “The Inhabitants of the Forbidden Land”, which tells the story of the lives of people inside the forgotten camp located on the Syrian-Jordanian border. In addition, he made another movie on the Greek islands in 2015, as well as a movie in which he revealed, after rigorous investigation, the hidden routes used in smuggling Syrian antiquities.
Alasaad said that his interest in documentaries started back in 2008, when he began producing documentaries on history and Bedouin tribes in Syria, such as “Top Gear”, a program that was produced in Syria and was broadcasted on the BBC.
He stated that his goal is to focus on issues related to immigration and the displaced in Europe, and to shed light on issues that concern the Arab communities in Europe, directing the camera from an Arab vintage point. He explained that, "there are several problems in the way Western media deals with the issue of immigration, the first of which is the coverage that focuses on the governments’ point of view and the suffering of refugees rather than their success stories. Recently, there was a failure to cover refugee news, like Zaher Salama’s story, a refugee who was threatened, with a number of Syrian families, with forced repatriation, under the claim that Syria had become safe.”
Zaher’s trial was overlooked by all visual and written media, which prompted Al- Assaad to make the documentary, “A One-Way Ticket” to inform the Danish audience about the most difficult and shocking moments in Zaher’s life. The family became the first to stand in the court to contest their deportation to Damascus, which the Danish authorities considered, along with Yarmouk camp, as a safe area for the return of refugees.
Zaman Al Wasl
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