The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and Joseph Kony Past and Present
Background, History and Information on the LRA and Joseph Kony
Information on the LRA, the abducted children, Child Soldiers, the war years in Northern Uganda, The Amnesty program for the LRA and the traditional ways of reconciliation of the Acholi People, and the Rebuilding of the North of Uganda..
Northern Uganda has suffered immensely from the
ravages of a war that the world knew little about for many years.
It is only in recent times
that the attention of the Western World has
turned to Rwanda. A place that was the described in a report from
the UN as the most dangerous place to live in the world. A BBC report
called it worse than Iraq. Yet the world knew so little about
Joseph Kony, the LRA, the abducted children who were turned into sex
slaves and child soldiers.
Children were robbed of their innocence and turned into assailants, from students to those who could in cold blood dismember their own family members. After Rwanda, no one thought that such violence would be seen again in Africa, but even while Rwanda was on fire, Northern Uganda had its own killing fields. The problem of the LRA and Joseph Kony is not over, it has simply shifted into other countries such as South Sudan, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo. (currently the DRC)
In 2005 a friend of mine was building a school in what had become part of the warzone of Northern Uganda, in the town of Lira, which is home to the Langi people. I was thankful for his courage in those days that I wrote a an article for a webpage that was get thousands and thousands of visitors over the years. Most every day that page is the number one page on my site, but the information though correct in 2005 no longer applies in the present. I then added other pages to help people to understand the problems with the LRA, Joseph Kony, child soldier, Amnesty for the LRA, including stories of former enslaved children...I hope it helps you to understand the LRA...from Kampala...jon
Uganda Lord Resistance Army - History - Background-Leaders-Joseph Kony-Child Soldiers-Rebuilding Northern Uganda-Reintegration, Peace in Northern Uganda, Amnesty for the LRA?
Alice Auma Lakwena: Very unlike Joseph Kony and the LRA and yet she is seen as the unwilling mother of all wars in Uganda. A warrior priestess who led thousands of Acholi warriors into battle with sticks and stones. Some see her as an Acholi Joan of Arc, others like President Museveni see her as a misguided person. She is said to be the cousin of Joseph Kony, but here the similarities end, she actually asked Joseph Kony to surrender on several occasion prior to her death.
Who
is Joseph Kony? He would like to be
seen as a mystical figure, the reality is that he is simply someone who
uses violence for violence sake to control those around him, to put fear
into the hearts of people where he is living. Who is this Joseph
Kony, this former altar boy now the villain of Central Africa, his name
alone bringing shudders to villagers in 4 countries?
Joseph Kony's Mother's
dying Wish.
Uganda's
Child Soldiers (Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army): 20
some years of children being robbed of their innocence turned into
assailants and murderers by the madman Joseph Kony and his LRA. What was
it like for a child in the LRA?
Catherine Ajok: The story of a girl forced to be the wife of Joseph Kony, bear his child and serve him for 13 years. The dramatic escape to to freedom in 2009 is the story of a woman who never gave up and is now reunited with her parents in Northern Uganda.
Where are the children of the LRA?
How many of the abducted children are still missing? What has
happened to the LRA child soldiers and forced wives? A look at
some numbers including the present number of LRA members, where are the
rest?
Amnesty for LRA Child Soldiers? What you may not realize 24,000 former LRA members have been given amnesty by the Uganda Amnesty Commission. Find out what traditional ways are used to bring healing to the community. Can child soldiers be reintegrated into their communities?
The Night Commuters of Northern Uganda Every evening they would walk for miles to stay safe from the attacks and abductions of Joseph Kony' Army. Sleeping in the streets, bus parks, schools, hospitals and simply under the awning of store-fronts, doing their homework by the light of gas stations.
Child Soldiers - Victims or Assailants: A look at child soldiers in history, where child soldiers are found with lessons learned from the LRA and Joseph Kony. From Colombia to the Congo, from Afghanistan to Darfur, Child soldiers are a reality. Where are child soldiers active in the world today?
Background information to the LRA child soldiers and child soldiers worldwide.
Uganda 2009 and Joseph Kony LRA: Where is Joseph Kony? The present situation regarding the war with
the LRA in northern Uganda. What is going on with Joseph Kony and his
LRA? How large is the LRA at this time? Joseph Kony, is fortunately alive and
well inside of the DRC, continuing his rampage of killing and
destruction and abduction on the population of the DRC around Garamba
National Park.
Joseph Kony LRA News
Updates: Latest updates regarding the LRA, Joseph Kony
and activities of the LRA now in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Joseph Kony is no longer just a menace to Uganda's north, that was bad
enough, now he is terrorizing a region of North Eastern Democratic
Republic of Congo and continuing his path of destruction and death.
It is still not Christmas in Northern Uganda:
Written - Christmas
2006, Peace talks were under way, there was a glimmer of hope.
The people of the north were weary of the future. The cessation of
hostilities agreement had been signed, but it was not known what it
meant and if it would hold. Over the years there had been many
promises, but little fulfillment of them.
It
does not feel like Christmas-Joseph Kony-Christmas 2008:
Operation Lightning Thunder began against the LRA on December 14, 2008.
The peace talks have failed, Joseph Kony refusing to sign the treaty due
to his fears regarding the indictments against him by the International
Criminal Court and his impending arrest. He also wants more
clarification on the Amnesty program inside of Uganda and how and if it
would apply to him.
Uganda is more than Idi Amin, Joseph Kony and the LRA:
The images that westerners have of Uganda is amazing. Rarely do
those images reflect the reality of Uganda. People see Uganda as a
dangerous place, they do not see as a country that is thriving in many
areas, as a country that is rebuilding the North of Uganda with the help
of many. They do not see the pearl of Africa, but filter it all
through the lenses of Joseph Kony, Idi Amin, LRA.
Living in a Warzone - Uganda:
Recently I received an email from a woman, that just happened to be from my hometown in the USA, Bellingham, WA. She challenged me to
prove that Uganda had been enjoying peace and that the north was slowly
rebuilding. Her email is indicative of what people in the west,
especially in the USA think is going on. When you search the
internet, you rarely find that Uganda has enjoyed a fragile peace for
over two years.
Northern
Uganda - Peace - Give it a Chance It has been a long night
for northern Uganda. The return to the villages and towns is an
adjustment from the Internally displaced camps. It is slowly
happening, there are struggles, but the fruits of the peace brought
about a cessation of hostilities can be seen in towns of the north of
Uganda.
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An In Depth Look at Joseph Kony and the LRA
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