Director: Tenji Takakura

Elizabeth is a freedom fighter. I met her in 2019 while I was covering a protest for Japan's long-term detention toward immigrants. Out of the crowd of angry Japanese activists yelling and chanting "release immigrants!" there was a woman who caught my attention, smiling and greeting the detainees from outside the building in English. That was Elizabeth. She is a Nigerian refugee whose smile is bright like the sun.
From a small tribe in southern Nigeria, she ran away from home to protect herself when her father tried to force FGM (female genital mutilation) on her. Southerners were still persecuted while political chaos continued in Nigeria. She managed to escape to Japan in 1991.

This film is part of a combined programme with: Dunkey following European dreams and Exodus. They give unique and new perspectives on refugees in different parts of the world, images we don’t see here in Europe.