The Defenders: The extraordinary story of the Save Hakeem campaign

The Save Hakeem story has everything – the interplay between money, politics and sport, and a young man at the centre of the maelstrom.

The campaign to save Hakeem al-Araibi from being extradited to Bahrain is the focus of The Defenders. Picture: Scott Barbour/Getty Images

The story of Hakeem al-Araibi is so extraordinary, almost any documentary feature on him would’ve been compelling.

Still, to capture the intense events of the former Bahraini footballer’s plight needed a finesse, and director Matthew Bate expertly positions the human story of al-Araibi’s life within the maelstrom of sport, politics and money.

The Defenders, which just won an audience award at the Sydney Film Festival, will enthral anyone with even a passing interest in how human rights and international institutions collide but, really, at the centre of it is one young man trying to live his life.

In 2012, al-Araibi was a footballer in his native Bahrain when he was picked up by the authorities. He was accused of being part of a group of 150 people who had vandalised a police station during an Arab Spring protest.

Even though he was playing in a televised match at the time of the incident, the police held him for 45 days, and in that time, assaulted and tortured him, hitting him on the legs and expressly told him they would ruin his body so could never again play.

Hakeem Al-Araibi as he left Thailand's Criminal Court, in Bangkok in February 2019. Picture: Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto via Getty Images

After he was released on bail, while in Qatar playing for the national team, al-Araibi fled and routed through several countries before he sought asylum in Australia. He spoke out about what happened to him. He was granted refugee status in 2017, which allowed him to travel with the protection of the Australian government.

It was under that assurance that he went to Thailand in late 2018 when he was arrested as soon as he landed at the airport in Bangkok, under an erroneously issued red notice from Interpol. The Thai government held him on behalf of the Bahraini authorities who had requested his extradition.

The situation was perilous. If al-Araibi was to be returned, he was certainly to face danger to his physical wellbeing, and there was 60 days to stop it. And the Save Hakeem campaign was born, spearheaded by Craig Foster.

Al-Araibi’s voiceover – spoken in Arabic – is an eloquent narration of the emotions that he experienced throughout the ordeal. He recounts how he feared he would never see his family again, how he would be disappeared if he was returned to Bahrain, and of the torture he went through years ago.

Former Socceroos captain, football commentator and activist Craig Foster spearheaded the Save Hakeem campaign. Picture: Amazon Prime Video

At the intersection of all this drama is why al-Araibi was targeted, and why the Thai authorities appeared to be complicit with an extradition request that didn’t have the correct legal standing.

The Defenders explores the links between the Thai royal family and the Bahraini royal family, as well Bahrain’s influence in world football through Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, who is vice president of FIFA and the president of the Asian Football Federation.

What happened to al-Alraibi is much bigger than his personal story, and if there’s one The Defenders could’ve done, it’s to delve deeper into sportswashing – the practice of papering over human rights abuses by autocratic countries through its associations with elite international sports.

Or perhaps it could’ve explored more al-Araibi’s life outside of this horrendous thing that happened to him. But you also understand why The Defenders chose to keep its focus specific to the Thai incident.

It’s a gripping story juggling many elements, and considering it’s a tight 81 minutes, The Defenders does what it needs to do as a jumping off point to look into any of the human rights issues it brings up.

Rating: 3/5

The Defenders is on Amazon Prime Video from Friday, June 23