Blind vote : representing the under-represented (and questioning the merit of the hallowed status of the hazy construct called democracy)

Abstract

The right to a secret, independent vote is a cornerstone of democracy, and is taken for granted by the citizens of Malta. Not, however, by the blind and the visually impaired. Blind vote is a documentary which investigates how these people are deprived of this basic right and only given the opportunity to vote in a manner which they feel is degrading and humiliating. Using an "invisible narrator" style, Blind vote explores an intricate web of political and legal complexities and human emotions exclusively through the words of blind persons, politicians, and other players in this issue. Besides interviews, it includes archive footage from many local and foreign sources, together with dramatisations. The blind have taken their struggle to the highest institution of justice on the island and have the knowledge, the resources and the stamina to go all the way. But the issue is still wide open ...