'The Uncondemned'

Pierre-Richard Prosper

Pierre-Richard Prosper, son of Haitian immigrants, brilliant lawyer and activist, was instrumental in persuading the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda to classify rape as a war crime. Prosper prosecuted and won the first genocide trial before that court in 1998 and made history with the court's acknowledgment that sexual violence constituted genocide. Before this ruling, the rape of women and girls went unpunished. Nearly half a million women and girls were systematically raped during the war but these atrocities were seen as collateral damage. Prosper argued that in fact, rape was part of a plan to ensure that these women would never procreate, therefore it was not just a component of the war, it was genocide. 

'The Uncondemned' is a documentary that chronicles Prosper and his co-counsel Sarah Darehshori's fight to bring these rapists to justice and prosecute them as war criminals. In the film, Prosper recounts putting the case together and presenting it to the tribunal. He returns to Rwanda to speak to those brave victims who testified about their rapes. Filmmakers Michelle Mitchel and Nick Louvel raised money via Kickstarter in 2013 to make and distribute the film. 'The Uncondemned' will be released in early 2015. 

 Check out the trailer, click HERE

*Photos via Inner City Press and Film at 11.