Mission Rape - a tool of war
Written and directed by::Katia Forbert Petersen and Annette Mari Olsen
Director of Photography: Katia Forbert Petersen
Editor: Wojcech Kloczko
Producers: Annette Mari Olsen, Karen Hjort, Katia Forbert Petersen
Duration: 61 minutes
Produced by: Sfinx Film om co-production with DRTV Denmark, SVT Sweden, BHRT Bosnia and Herzegovina, RUV Iceland, TVP1 Poland with support from The Danish Film Institute, MEDIA of the European Union, OAK Foundation Denmark and DRTV Sales. Broadcasted on: DRTV (Denmark), SVT (Sweden), BHRT (Bosnia and Herzegovina), TVP (Poland), RUV (Iceland)
Screened at international conferences and at special screenings in NATO, UN and DIIS, Institute of Women Studies in the Arab World, in Beirut Lebanon used as informative lead-in material.
Every day, a group of women meets in an association located in a suburb of Sarajevo.
They all have a common story. The association is the focal point of the film and here we find the origin of the film.
During the war in the Balkans in the years 1992-1995, between 40 - 50,000 women were subjected to rape.
Rape is used as a strategy of war, in the same way that we witness it, throughout many hundreds of years of war history. In the film, we experience how mass rape destroys not only the women who are victims of rape, but also entire families and societies for several generations to come. For these victims, legal justice is the only hope of regaining self-esteem and integrity. Although it is against international law, rape is underestimated in the post-war court proceedings, and is treated as one of the less significant war crimes.
To date, only a few cases dealing with sexual assault in war situations have been punished. This unresolved legal dilemma strains the reconciliation process, which is so important for the victims and for society as a whole,
and it is precisely here that the film has its focus. Mission Rape is a universal story that takes place in the Balkan War, but could take place anywhere in today's wars. It is a documentary that delves into the overriding dilemma within martial law: What significance does it have for the healing process when those who have committed crimes against innocent women, children and men are not judged for their actions?
All the while, we witness how rape continues to be used as a weapon of war in contemporary wars, for example in Ukraine.
Read more about the movie and follow at norape.org