Peace vs Justice

Critical documentary about the role of the International Criminal Court in the trial against rebel leader Joseph Kony, whose Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has spread death and destruction in Uganda for nearly twenty years now.

Despite frenetic attempts to establish peace in the country, Ugandan president Museveni and his government have not yet succeeded in resolving the armed conflict with the dreaded LRA and putting an end to the violence. Kony’s army, that deploys numerous child soldiers, has meanwhile expanded its field of activity to Sudan and Congo. The International Criminal Court in The Hague seeks to bring Kony to trial, but what the locals really want is peace and for their children to return home. This multi-layered documentary about complex moral issues proves that cultural differences can get in the way of the peace process, despite everyone basically having the same objective. Moving her camera back and forth between The Hague and Uganda, documentary filmmaker Klaartje Quirijns shows that miscommunication and different conceptions of justice partly explain why evildoer Kony is still walking free.

Quirijns’ previous film The Dictator Hunter was featured at the 2008 Movies that Matter Festival.