Joseph Kony

Joseph Kony
File:Joseph Kony (296444792).jpg Joseph Kony
Born	Joseph Kony ca. 1962 Odek, Uganda
Nationality	Ugandan
Title	Leader of the Lord's Resistance Army

Joseph Kony (born ca. 1962) is the head of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a guerrilla group that is engaged in a violent campaign to establish theocratic government in Uganda, which claims to be based on the Christian Bible and the Ten Commandments. The LRA, which earned a reputation for its actions against the people of northern Uganda, has abducted an estimated 30,000 children since its rebellion began in 1987.

Biography

While investigating the Lords resistance Army, Jimmie Briggs attempted to sort through several versions of Joseph Kony's life and come up with the most credible one. Norah Anek Oting gave birth to Kony in Odek, a village east of Gulu in northern Uganda around 1964 or 1965 . Kony was the eldest son of farmers. It is uncertain how many siblings he had. He was friendly to his siblings, but if they crossed him he came down hard on them. During his teenage years, Joseph Kony apprenticed as the village witch doctor under his older brother, Benon Okello , and when his older brother died, he took over full responsibility. When confronted he often resorted to his fists rather than parrying verbally. He was teased in school about his size and the teachers gave him a hard time because he didn't seem too bright. His father was a lay apostle of the Catholic Church and his mother was an Anglican, Kony was an altar boy for several years. He stopped attending church at about the age of 15. A high-school dropout, Kony first came to prominence in January 1987, at age 26. His group was one of many premillennialist groups that sprang up in Acholiland in the wake of the wildly popular Holy Spirit Movement of Alice Auma (aka Lakwena). However, the conflict in the north began in the resentment among the Acholi at their relative loss of influence after the overthrow of Acholi President Tito Okello by Yoweri Museveni and his National Resistance Army (NRA) during "the war in the bush", ending in 1986.

Originally Kony's group was named the United Holy Salvation Army (UHSA) and was not perceived as a threat by the NRA. By 1988, with the accord between NRA and the Uganda People's Democratic Army and addition of its remnant troops as well as forced recruitment of children the United Holy Salvation Army was becoming a formidable resistance army. The bulk of his foot soldiers were children. He is estimated to have taken 10,000 or more boys and girls since the LRA started fighting in 1986. He often killed their family and neighbors when abducting these children, forcing them to fight for him. With these remnants of UPDA was commander Odong Latek, who convinced Kony to use standard military tactics as opposed to its previous attempts which involved attacking in cross-shaped formations and the use of holy water. The new tactics proved successful and the UHSA delivered several small but stinging defeats against the NRA. After these victories the NRA responded by significantly weakening the Kony's group with political actions and a military campaign named Operation North.

By 1992, Kony had renamed the group United Democratic Christian Army and it was at this time that they kidnapped 44 girls from the Sacred Heart Secondary and St. Mary's girls schools. Operation North was devastating to what would become the Lord's Resistance Army and with their number reduced from thousands to hundreds still engaged in retaliatory attacks on civilians and NRA collaborators.

The Bigombe talks in 1993 led to more insight into Joseph Kony. Betty Bigombe remembered that the first time she met Kony, his followers used oil to ward-off bullets and evil spirits. Also in a letter regarding future talks, Kony stated that he must consult the Holy Spirit. When the talks did occur they insisted on participation of religious leaders and opened the proceedings with prayers led by LRA's Director of Religious Affairs Jenaro Bongomi. Finally in the 1994 peace talks Kony appeared preceded by men in robes sprinkling holy water.

Many international attempts at peace and an end to the abduction of children by Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army occurred between 1996 and 2001. All of them failed to end the abductions, rape, child soldiers, and civilian casualties including attacks on refugee camps. After the September 11th attacks the United States declared the Lord's Resistance Army a terrorist group and Joseph Kony a terrorist.

Joseph Kony was thought to have been possessed by spirits; he has been portrayed as either the Messiah or the devil. He reportedly made annual trips to the Ato Hills in Uganda. He would allegedly ascend to the highest of the hills and lie down in the hot sun for days. He would be covered by a blanket of red termites that slashed deeply into his skin. Oil from a plant called Yao was spread over his body. Then he would enter a cave and stay in seclusion for weeks. The direction he gave to children was even more absurd - he told them if they drew a cross on their chest with oil they would be protected from bullets. Kony insists that he and the Lord's Resistance Army are fighting for the Ten Commandments. “Yes, we are fighting for Ten Commandments,” “Is it bad? It is not against human rights. And that commandment was not given by Joseph. It was not given by LRA. No, that commandment was given by God.”

According to the the Ugandan tabloid Red Pepper Kony murdered his deputy Vincent Otti and ate his penis in November 2007.

Indictment

On October 6, 2005 it was announced by the International Criminal Court (ICC) that arrest warrants had been issued for five members of the Lord's Resistance Army for crimes against humanity following a sealed indictment. On the next day Ugandan defense minister Amama Mbabazi revealed that the warrants include Joseph Kony, his deputy Vincent Otti, and LRA commanders Raska Lukwiya, Okot Odiambo and Dominic Ongwen. According to spokesmen for the military, the Ugandan army killed Lukwiya on August 12, 2006.

A week later, on October 13, ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo released details on Kony's indictment. There are 33 charges, 12 counts are crimes against humanity, which include murder, enslavement, sexual enslavement and rape. There are another 21 counts of war crimes which include murder, cruel treatment of civilians, intentionally directing an attack against a civilian population, pillaging, inducing rape, and forced enlisting of children into the rebel ranks. Ocampo said that "Kony was abducting girls to offer them as rewards to his commanders."

The Ugandan military has attempted to kill Kony for most of the insurgency.

On July 31, 2006 Kony met with several cultural, political, and religious leaders from northern Uganda at his hideout in the Congolese forests to discuss the war. The following day, August 1, he crossed the border into Sudan to speak with Southern Sudan Vice President Riek Machar. Kony later told reporters that he would not be willing to stand trial at the ICC because he had not done anything wrong.

On November 12, 2006 Kony met Jan Egeland, the United Nations Undersecretary-General for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief. Kony told Reuters: "We don't have any children. We only have combatants."

On August 28, 2008, the United States Treasury Department placed Kony on its list of "specially designated global terrorists," a designation that carries financial and other penalties. It is unknown whether or not Kony has any assets that are affected by this designation.[8]

On December 24, 2008, according to the United Nations peacekeeping force, rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) allegedly massacred 189 people and abducted 20 children during a celebration sponsored by the Catholic church in Faradje, Democratic Republic of Congo. Congo's army, along with armed forces from Uganda and Sudan, launched raids against LRA rebels in December 2008 intended to disarm the LRA and end its rebellion. [9]

Bibliography

• Green, Matthew (2008). The Wizard of the Nile: The Hunt for Africa's Most Wanted. Portobello Books. ISBN 978-1846270307. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Briggs, Jimmie (2005). The Innocents Lost: When Child soldiers Go to war. Basic Books. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• Girl Soldiers - The cost of survival in Northern Uganda Women News Network - WNN
• "I want peace talks to resume" Audio interview with Kony on Radio France Internationale English Service 22 June 2008
• I want peace, but Museveni is the problem, says Kony, transcript of Joseph Kony's call in to a political talk show on the Mega FM radio station broadcasting from Gulu on 28 December 2002
• Kony's eldest son killed, New Vision, 8 July 2005
• Hague Justice Portal: Joseph Kony
• Profile: Ugandan rebel Joseph Kony, BBC News, last updated 7 October 2005
• J. Carter Johnson, Deliver Us from Kony, Christianity Today, January 2006
• Portrait of Uganda's rebel prophet, painted by wives, Mail & Guardian, 10 February 2006
• Sam Farmar, Uganda rebel leader breaks silence (interview with downloadable audio in MP3 format), BBC Newsnight, 28 June 2006
• Ruud Elmendorp, Joseph Kony gives press conference (video report from Joseph Kony in his outpost in the Congo), Ruud Elmendorp, 2 August 2006
• Ruud Elmendorp's video interview with Joseph Kony on Rocketboom 16 August 2006
• Ochola John, LRA victim: 'I cannot forget and forgive', BBC, 29 June 2006
• UN envoy sees Uganda rebel chief Publish BBC News Sunday, 12 November 2006
• Julia Spiegel of the Enough Project discusses efforts to kill Joseph Kony Bloggingheads TV diavlog Sunday, 11 January 2009

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