"What we want to highlight is the lack of development in the area that we're talking about, where people have a lot of concerns – including the lack of access to hospitals, roads and schools – with this impacting massively on these people," Van Damme said. [45] In August 2008, the US Department of State declared Joseph Kony a Specially Designated Global Terrorist pursuant to Executive Order 13224, a designation that carries financial and other penalties. "[25][41] During peace talks in 1994, Kony was preceded by men in robes sprinkling holy water. [64] A poll suggested that more than half of young adult Americans heard about Kony 2012 in the days following the video's release, and several weeks after the release of the video, a resolution condemning Kony and supporting US assistance fighting the LRA was introduced in the US Senate, passing several months later. [70], In April 2017, Ugandan and US military forces ended their hunt for Kony and his group, with a Ugandan spokesperson stating that "the LRA no longer poses a threat to us as Uganda". The actual number of LRA militia members has varied significantly over the years, reaching as high as 3000 soldiers. Now, seven years after the phenomenon, he's headed to play for China after having played for eight different NBA teams. It documents child abductions happening there as recently as 2009. They are having a great impact in northern Uganda. Thanks for reading – and thanks especially to all those who wrote in with valuable context and ideas. Their reputation in the country is something that can be debatable. Comedy Central Store. I don't care if you mean good. [31], Kony has been implicated in abduction and recruitment of child soldiers. It might be an appeal that makes sense in America. It doesn't sound like a fair representation of Uganda. [27] Kony enjoyed a good relationship with his siblings, but was quick to retaliate in a dispute and when confronted would often resort to physical violence. We are left as the pawns in the game. Those are resource wars.". Sawyer praised Invisible Children's work in north eastern Congo–an area impacted by LRA activity–in setting up an early warning system. Villagers I interviewed complained why, despite a presence of over 100 UN troops in their village, the UN was consistently failing to protect them (there were several deaths in the days before I arrived there). [2], In 1995, Kony rose to prominence in Acholiland after the Holy Spirit Movement of Alice Auma (also known as Lakwena and to whom Kony is believed to be related). So far the organisation has released 11 films and run film tours across the US and other countries to raise awareness. Joseph Kony and the LRA received a surge of attention in early March 2012, when a 30-minute documentary titled Kony 2012 by US filmmaker Jason Russell for the campaign group Invisible Children, Inc. was released. The ⦠What they can do is provide the logistical support that is needed, the advice, the training and the logistical support that hopefully will allow this kind of stuff to stop. Join us. I think that time has passed. [5][6] While initially purporting to fight against government oppression, the LRA allegedly turned against Kony's own supporters, supposedly to "purify" the Acholi people and turn Uganda into a theocracy. Bussman takes issue with those who criticize the film for oversimplifying the situation in Central Africa. The exchange is below. We've had concerns about Uganda's human rights record domestically, within Uganda," Sawyer pointed out. They will take it as the only story about that issue. [24], Kony was likely born in 1961,[1] in Odek, a village east of Gulu in northern Uganda,[2][25] to farmers Luizi Obol and Nora Oting. It was not given by LRA. Photograph: Stuart Price/AP, We have switched off comments on this old version of the site. Back in 2008 I wanted this war to end, like we all did, peacefully, through peace talks. They are going through what we went through.". There is also a lot of academic discussion about whether the in country trials would have to be criminal prosecutions or if alternative justice processes, such as truth commissions, would be acceptable to the ICC. [20] Kony was indicted in 2005 for war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, but he has evaded capture. 12.32pm: I've just been speaking with Arthur Larok, Action Aid's director in Uganda. They terrorize villages, they take children into custody and turn them into child soldiers, they engage in rape and slaughter in villages they go through. I don't know whether those details are thought about. South Park Shop. Here are the 163 we asked during the 2011-12 school year. It's thriving, growing, people are trying to put their lives together. Broad City. However, in 2008 the Ugandan army invaded the DRC in search for the LRA in Operation Lightning Thunder. Laren Poole, another co-founder, is another filmmaker and the Ben Keesey, the chief finanacial officer, has been with Deloitte and Touche LLP, JP Morgan & Associates and Brentwood Associates Private Equity. In Uganda many have seen it as a misrepresentation of conflict and attempt to bring down the conflict just to American action, ignoring other actors. ", "If they had taken the story to where it is now, which is DRC, I think that you could still raise the question of Kony's atrocities, which are still ongoing now, but also raise the important issues that come with that, including the fact that DRC is where in 90s six or seven armies fought. He writes: It would be great to get rid of Kony. Part of that includes securing the border against rebels groups including the LRA, the Allied Democratic Forces, Congolese militias and several other Sudanese and Congolese groups that are all operating in that area," he said. [22] In 2013, Kony was reported to be in poor health, and Michel Djotodia, president of the CAR, claimed he was negotiating with Kony to surrender. We had a long conversation but, to be clear, he hasn't at this point seen the film though he does know about Invisible Children and its work in Uganda. Maybe Jason Russell's web-based film Kony 2012, calling for international action to stop the Ugandan war criminal Joseph Kony, can't be considered great documentary-making. Full story to follow on the website shortly. It might be best on the internet and the like but, at the end of the day, there are more pressing things to deal with. Teddy wrote this blog about the campaign. See more. They are like any other organisation trying to make a difference. [28] He dropped out of school at the age of 15. The intention of the production was to draw attention to Kony in an effort to increase US involvement in the issue and have Kony arrested by the end of 2012. The media campaigning is a different type of work to on the ground project work they do. For five years he had served as a corporal in Joseph Kony's ranks, tasked with leading groups of 11-year-olds in attacks on vehicles and, on occasion, clubbing prisoners to death. However, international campaigns called for all camps to be dismantled, and for the people to return to their former villages. That would help the situation as it is. Anything else is reactionary and frankly selfish. 2.27pm: This is really interesting detail from a reader about the process of what would happen if Knoy is arrested. In October, the president deployed 100 combat-equipped troops – mostly special operations forces – to Uganda to advise regional military units in capturing or killing Kony. Over 4000 children are victims of this incurable debilitating condition. March 2012: âKony 2012â went viral. He said: What I'd really like is for organisations like this to have a little bit more respect for individuals like ourselves you have the capability to speak for ourselves. 20 Apr 2012: Kony 2012: what happens next? March 6, 2012 at 10:06 AM We are currently in the process of interviewing potential board members, and our goal is to add an additional independent member this year in order to regain our 4-star rating by 2013. In terms of psychological day to day living Kony is the bigger barrier to people getting on with their lives. The US isn't defined by civil war or 9/11. Kony Is Now Temenos Temenos acquired Kony, the leading digital banking SaaS company in the US. Nearly $400,000 was spent on office rent in San Diego. Konyâs innovative technology accelerated Temenos Infinity, the cloud-native digital banking product, which drives outstanding digital experiences across customer journeys. John Vidal has been looking into this. This would seem to be a vote of no confidence, but it is explained by Noelle Jouglet, communication director of Invisible Children, like this: "Our score is currently at 2 stars due to the fact that Invisible Children currently does not have five independent voting members on our board of directors. $1.7 million went on US employee salaries, $357,000 in film costs, $850,000 in film production costs, $244,000 in "professional services" - thought to be Washington lobbyists - and $1.07 million in travel expenses . a report his colleagues published on northern Uganda in Foreign Affairs, switch over to the new version to comment, BBC Sports Personality of the Year – in pictures, Dinner, dusk and dancing Russians: my best winter shot, Kony 2012: the numbers behind the video INFOGRAPHIC. The circumstances in the north have changed. By 2017, the organization's membership had shrunk significantly to an estimated 100 soldiers. No, those commandments were given by God. Van Damme said his organization is concerned about potentially violent consequences for the local population from the Kony2012 campaign. We're not babies. Surely any exposure of such a man is positive, no matter how much money is spent on the medium in which the message is contained? [4][26]:page 136 Kony insists that he and the LRA are fighting for the Ten Commandments, and defended his actions in an interview, saying, "Is it bad? 7.21pm GMT / 2.21pm ET: Tom McCarthy here in New York taking over for Polly Curtis. By putting themselves as the heroes of our situation it debilitates our own ability to progress and develop our own capacity. It's a neurological disease that has baffled world scientists and attacks mainly children from the most war affected districts of Kitgum, Pader and Gulu. He writes: They call themselves "a movement" seeking to end the conflict in Uganda and stop the abduction of children for use as child soldiers, but behind the slick website and the touchy-feely talk about "changing the course of human history", there's a hard-nosed money-making operation led by US filmmakers and accountants, commuication experts, lobbyists and salespeople. I think they need to decide whether they go down the route of media campaigns or do project work. [28] He is a proponent of polygamy, and is thought to have had 60 wives,[25] and to have fathered 42 children. The Ugandan army and military, including members of the family of the president, are known to have cashed in on the country's sending of troops to participate in the civil war of Congo DRC in the 1990s. 12.59pm: The Ugandan journalist Angelo Opi-aiya Izama has written this blog, which makes a similar point to that of Larok about the Invisible Children campaign being outdated. The man [Kony] hasn't been in the country for over six years. They don't work so much within the structures we have in the country. . [36] Journeyman Pictures released a 2006 interview with Kony in which he proclaims: "I am a freedom fighter, not a terrorist. 11.30am: This excellent post by Michael Wilkerson, a journalist who has worked extensively in Uganda, starts busting some of the myths around Kony and the situation in Uganda. We need to change the image of Africa as a basket case. He rejected widespread criticism in Uganda and abroad that the American-made film calling for Kony's arrest is out-of-date or irrelevant, my colleague Julian Borger writes. The other criticism has been that the video heavily relies on images shot in Uganda more than 6 years ago and presents it as the current situation. The bill passed unanimously in the United States Senate on 11 March. Sawyer commented on the Ugandan military forces that the United States is cooperating with in its efforts to eliminate Kony. If the Americans had wanted to arrest him, they would have done that a long time ago. ", "And hopefully, the idea of having these American military advisers working closely with them, they can help insure that protections of civilians is prioritized and intelligence is acted on effectively and that any potential threats to civilians, or possible retaliation attacks are avoided.". We are not defined by him or Idi Amin. "It is not too late, because all this fighting and suffering is still going on elsewhere," Acaye, now 21, told the Guardian in a telephone interview from Kampala. [46] In November 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush signed the directive to the United States Africa Command to provide financial and logistical assistance to the Ugandan government during the unsuccessful 2008â2009 Garamba offensive, code-named Operation Lightning Thunder. Murder, recruitment of children as soldiers, mutilation and rape. Check out the Guardian tomorrow for more, including an interview with Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti on why this video, of all activist videos, went viral. One seller rgalle86rob is located in Wallasey, Merseyside and offering vinyl stickers for £1.49. 12.54pm: The Invisible Children film has now been viewed more than 26m times. Kony tells his child soldiers that a cross on their chest drawn in oil will protect them from bullets. 2.54pm: A reader has written in pointing out there there is now thousands of pounds worth of Kony 2012 merchandise available of Ebay. It is partisan, tactless and very bold. 3.51pm: Our New York based reporter Ryan Devereaux has been attempting to make contact with Invisible Children to put some of the concerns about their tactics to them. This international task force was stated to include soldiers "from Uganda, South Sudan, Central African Republic and Congo, countries where Kony's reign of terror has been felt over the years." In 2008, responding to a request by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to engage in peace talks via telephone, he said, "I will communicate with Museveni through the holy spirits and not through the telephone. This search shows 443 items for sale on the English version of the site. The photo shows the founders of Invisible Children - Bobby Bailey, Laren Poole, and Jason Russell - posing with guns alongside members of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). This is nothing new in political circles - why should it be any different when it comes to charities? ", People need to realize, Bussman said, that "it's really bloody difficult to get the media to give a damn about stories with black people in the middle. Throughout today several people have recommended that I speak with the Ugandan journalist Rosebell Kagumire. Many international organisations prefer to work and have direct contact with their quarters. He's been talking to our foreign desk and has just sent this as an addition: One salient issue the film totally misses is that the actual geography of today's LRA operations is related to a potentially troubling "resource war". On the next day, Ugandan defense minister Amama Mbabazi revealed that the warrants include Kony, his deputy Vincent Otti, and LRA commanders Raska Lukwiya, Okot Odhiambo, and Dominic Ongwen. He was released in 1992 after the government no longer viewed him as a threat. Here is Ryan's report: "In general, we're concerned [about] the catastrophic consequences for the local population," Van Damme said. But today, years after Kony has moved away from Uganda, I think campaigning that appeals to these emotions … I'm not sure that's effective for now. Soon after, she⦠[24][34], In October 2006, the ICC announced that arrest warrants had been issued for five members of the Lord's Resistance Army for crimes against humanity following a sealed indictment. In something which is the future of these children's lives you have to have a long term vision. ", The system relies on a two-way radio network, "They're training these two-way radio monitors who can report immediately when there's LRA presence or there's an attack. A reader has emailed in pointing us towards this Facebook page: PhonyKony 2012. We have to rise ourselves otherwise we'll always be the dependants. The Daily Show Shop. Living now in Texas and with a hunter husband then the beef or lamb is replaced by venison. The Lord's Revolutionary (sic) Army that these troops will be helping to remove their leaders from the battlefield, they are known for using child soldiers, and I'm wondering — the process of agreeing to deploy troops in a situation like this where you know that these special forces might have to return fire and they might be firing upon child soldiers — how difficult is that as a decision to make? It might seem like a minor point, but to me it demonstrates a lack of interest on the part of IC on the specifics. "[37] He told Reuters: "We don't have any children. She said: Invisible Children have had a huge impact on the area. They are advocating for a mechanism to end war with more attention to a perpetrator not victims. In 2006, in the course of the Juba peace talks with the LRA rebels, Museveni's government gave permission for the local people to return to their villages. Our principle approach is to attempt to gather views from Uganda about whether this film is the right way to go about campaigning on the issue. Being dramatic about a country at war is not accurate. We were there to see Joseph Kony come to the table to sign the Final Peace Agreement. Among who also hails from the north says there's a lot of ego in the video and he ignores the past initiatives of people like Betty Bigombe, the Jub peace process which is wrong. Can we at least hear from the victims? [26] He is a member of the Acholi people. Bussman said Invisible Children did what it had to do to draw attention to an important issue. She also praised Invisible Children's rehabilitation program–a partnership with the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission–for former child soldiers abducted by the LRA in Congo. But many organisations and governments are focusing on this. KONY IS A BAD GUY. Uganda is strong, vibrant, developing technology, industry, the resilient women are rising in civil groups, that's what I want to talk about. Of the five LRA commanders charged by the ICC in 2004, only Kony remained at large at that time. His older sister, Gabriela Lakot, still lives in Odek. Javie Ssozi a digital media consultant in Kampala commented on his facebook wall "They are responding to the right cause with a wrong approach! [2] Kony proclaims himself the spokesperson of God and a spirit medium and claims he is visited by a multinational host of 13 spirits, including a Chinese phantom. It also makes the point that there is currently no threat to remove the US advisers who are working with the Uganda government to track down the army – Invisible Children's key aim is to force the US government to keep them there. He writes: He wore tattered trousers, muddy wellington boots, a grubby anorak and avoided eye contact. I did my masters at SOAS last year, focusing on transitional justice. [35] In November 2006, Kony met Jan Egeland, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. We need to understand that there is more to us than the failures of our past. "LRA is actually a minority. "The big story in Uganda is about the oil. Do you have any relevant information? 5.00pm: Rory Carroll, who has reported from all over the world for the Guardian, has just filed a story reflecting on his experience meeting members of the LRA. The US designated the LRA a terrorist group after September 11, and in 2008 began actively supporting the Ugandan military. The enrichment schemes involve the plundering of timber and high-value minerals like gold, diamonds and coltan in eastern DRC and the creation of false payment and pension schemes for army sections that do not exist ('ghost soldiers'). Himself kidnapped as a child, he became a soldier in the LRA, then rose through the organization's hierarchy. Prior to this announcement, the hunt for Kony had primarily been carried out by troops from Uganda. I don't think in the north at the moment that is really what is most important. In Congo and Central African Republic, Sawyer said Invisible Children has been "some of the quickest organizations to respond to the needs on the ground, very flexible and willing to work with and listen to the local communities. There's no indication that the profits will go to charity. Izama was born in Kampala, Uganda and is currently a Knight Fellow at Stanford University. Campaigning on killing one man and that's the end is not enough.". They don't understand the nuance of the situation. Do post any specific questions you'd like them to answer below the line or tweet @RDevro. Weâve posted a fresh Student Opinion question nearly every weekday for almost three years now. All ill roads are built on good intentions. It is a simple message which my 15-year-old son sent to me – Hollywood or not, it works!". 1UP's Favorite Games of 2012. She criticizes the Invisible Children video as propagating sterotypes about Africa. The LRA have had battle confrontations with the government's NRA or UPDF within Uganda and in South Sudan for ten years. While such programs have taken hold in Uganda, Sawyer noted "a gap" in similar support networks for Congolese victims. If you go to Gulu, where the worst of his atrocities were committed, it's a different town. Do get in touch. There is very limited infrastructure, very limited amount of roads, schools, hospitals, very limited communications. @Uglyflubb and others have been providing some information about the funding of Invisible Children below the line. People did not really know about it. Just because you mean good doesn't give you the right to control my life. I worked alongside them and they were very solutions focused. In fact the late Pope John Paul sent a message to Kony which is inscribed on a stone in the school in northern Uganda. [25] According to Francis Ongom, a former LRA officer who defected, Kony "has found Bible justifications for killing witches, for killing [those who farm or eat] pigs because of the story of the Gadarene swine, and for killing [other] people because God did the same with Noah's flood and Sodom and Gomorrah. That's important, but you need the expert input. We have moved beyond that. It doesn't ask people to understand much more than 'There is good, and there is bad.'". [2] Ideologically, the group is a syncretic mix of mysticism, Acholi nationalism, and Christian fundamentalism, and claims to be establishing a theocratic state based on the Ten Commandments and local Acholi tradition. Barbara Among, a Ugandan journalist at the independent Daily Monitor said the video simplifies the war against Kony and downplays realities on the ground. The hashtag #stopkony has had hundreds of thousands of tweets, and millions of people now know something about Uganda and what is happening to children there. It does not have have 30,000 or 60,000 child soldiers. The accounts suggest nearly 25% of its $8.8m income last year was spent on travel and film-making with only around 30% going toward programes on the ground. "For Uganda to exploit oil on that border region, it has to run a very large security operation. The persecution of homosexuals is also strongly driven (and funded) by American-based Christian fundamentalist groups, who also see Uganda as a frontline in the cultural war against Islam, thanks to the Museveni regimie's outspoken (and military-strategis) support of the US 'War on Terror'. This is Simon's take on the Invisible Children campaign: I felt a little nauseous watching the film. No one knows where Kony is, and most of his band operate independently. But then I don't agree in the film itself. There are political, economic and social challenges, but they are complex. Each question is based on content from that weekâs New York Times, and all of them ⦠Home. He specializes in security issues in Central Africa, and argues for a more nuanced and complex look at the region than the picture painted by Invisible Children. This is clearly sanctioned, even driven by the country's leadership. A still from the so-called Kony2012 initiative, launched by the non-profit group Invisible Children which demands the removal of Ugandan guerrilla leader Joseph Rao Kony. Couldn't help but feel the director's concern was less about addressing the needs of those affected today by the LRA and the complexities of tackling the rebel group, than as serving as a very slick promotional vehicle for his charity. Try Paramount+. Joseph Kony's crimes against children are well documented. Victor Ochen, the Director of African Youth Initiative Network (AYInet) based in Lira which was the site of one Kony's worst massacres in Uganda said that though the campaigners have good intentions they don't seem to seek a lasting solution. "Until now, the war that was going on has been a silent war. However, Kony 2012 had its fair share of criticism as there were allegations of misstated facts and misrepresentation of the situation in Uganda. They also have very aggressive tactics and they are not squeaky clean. This from Save the Children's director of policy and advocacy, Brendan Cox: Anything which continues to pressurise world leaders to bring Joseph Kony to justice is to be welcomed. On the American Ebay website 1,391 items come up under a search for "Kony" including keyrings, t shirts, posters and phone covers. Getting the facts right is most important for the international media. Without a better brand we cannot develop better international relations. A story told by Jason Russell: The photo of Bobby, Laren and I with the guns was taken in an LRA camp in DRC during the 2008 Juba Peace Talks. It does not stick to the conventions of impartial journalism in the BBC style. They didn't sit around talking for too long and checked with experts and that the local people wanted what they were doing. In a letter to Congress, Obama stated: "Although the U.S. forces are combat-equipped, they will only be providing information, advice, and assistance to partner nation forces, and they will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense". Kony is nowhere near the top of the concerns for us Ugandans. There is a strong argument generally about NGOs and their work in the north. [54][55][56][57] On 24 March 2014, the U.S. announced they would deploy at least four CV-22 Ospreys and refuelling planes, and 150 Air Force special forces personnel to assist in the capture of Kony. "From out perspective at Human Rights Watch, we definitely support the message of the film and we think it's great that they're bringing so much attention to the film with Kony's crimes and the phenomena of the LRA," Sawyer said. This context is relevant because it allows for outsiders to view the LRA issue more objectively within the recent history of violence in the wider region that includes the great Central Africa wars of the 90s, in which groups like LRA were pawns for proxy wars between countries. Satellite imagery of an attack on a military hospital near Martakert. We have challenges within the country, but certainly the perception of a country at war is not accurate at all. During her time there she worked with Invisible Children and she gives a really nuanced views of their work. And is Jason Russell scared to come out and admit that effective action entails an old-fashioned boots-on-soil invasion of a landlocked African country, with all the collateral damage that this implies? The website suggests a staff of around 100 people, with the founders and senior staff mostly drawn from film-making and media industries. Get in touch below the line, tweet @pollycurtis or email me at polly.curtis@guardian.co.uk. He was speaking to me from New York, but spends half his time in Uganda. [62], Joseph Kony and the LRA received a surge of attention in early March 2012, when a 30-minute documentary titled Kony 2012 by US filmmaker Jason Russell for the campaign group Invisible Children, Inc. was released. I don't think this is the best way. This is what we're trying to focus on. He said joint military operations are increasingly concentrated in the oil-rich area. It's a slick, high-gloss piece of work, distributed on the Vimeo site, the upscale version of YouTube for serious film-makers. But as a piece of digital polemic and digital activism, it is quite simply brilliant. "One of my issues with Invisible Children is that by providing such a truncated vision, and an unreal one, of what's happening today in our area right now, they missed the opportunity to cast this in much more broader and much more significant terms.".