DVD | 72 mins

Punitive Damage tells the story of Kamal’s mother, Helen Todd who brought a lawsuit against an Indonesian general responsible for the slaughter. She was determined to seek justice not just for her own terrible loss but also on behalf of the Timorese who also lost their children. The Dili massacre became a turning point in the history of East Timor, which finally gained its independence from Indonesia in 1999 – the year the film was released.

On 13 November 1991, Helen Todd received a phone call every parent dreads. Her 20 year old son, Kamal, had been injured, shot on a small island the world knew little about – East Timor. The nightmare of the next few days intensified, until finally she was informed of his death, then blocked from travel to the island by the Indonesian authorities.

In her grief, Helen Todd became determined to avenge her son’s death. She eventually found a way to fight the Indonesian Government and those responsible in a landmark international court case. As Kamal’s story unfolds, Punitive Damage is not only a mother’s tale of sorrow, but also a testimony to the brutal reality of Indonesia’s military occupation of East Timor.