A QUESTION OF JUSTICE © 2004

By Calogero Salvo - Producer, Director, Cinematographer and Editor
Video - Color - 52:30 Min.

Synopsis

The murder of her 19 year-old-son Ramon Ernesto by the police in a raid in a Caracas barrio changed Raquel's life.   From being a woman who accepts the world around her, she decides to channel her anger and start writing about what she feels in her heart. Moreover she decides that educating the police on the implications of their behavior is more important than prosecuting them.

Maria couldn't understand why her son Jesus wanted to go to a protest march in Caracas with his father.   That evening she saw her son wounded on the ground while watching television coverage of the deadly event. Since then, all she wants is for the people responsible to be brought to justice. For Mohamad, taking his son Jesus to a protest march was a way to share an important moment with him. Little did he know that a bullet from a pro-government militant would find its way into his son's head and kill him.   Angry and defiant, Mohamad cannot rest until his son's death, along with many others, is acknowledged by government authorities. He seeks the help of a human rights lawyer, who helps him bring the case before Venezuela's Supreme Court and The International Criminal Court in The Hague.   

Alexis, an indigenous social worker, can't accept why dozens of Wayúu children die every month from starvation and illness, specially given the fact that her people are protected under the new Constitution.   She is tired of being patronized by organizations that come to study the situation and do nothing about it. So, with minimal support, she takes it upon herself to find ways to change the dynamic and create a bridge between her people and the establishment.

A QUESTION OF JUSTICE is a one-hour video documentary that traces the lives of people whose encounter with death in their families and communities brings out the best in them. Crossing political and socio-economic barriers, the film explores the relationship between impunity and justice, acceptance and anger, law enforcement and civic duty.

Ultimately, it's a story that questions the value of a citizen's life in a lawless society, where power and corruption in government are the order of the day to the detriment of the people it is there to serve.