The Saga of Joseph Kony

Today I want to introduce you to Joseph Kony, the self-proclaimed “Messiah” and nephew of Alice Lakwena. When I think about Kony, I cannot help but think about the number of crusades and other military exercises that were waged because “God wills it!” In all actuality, Kony was raised in the Catholic Church. He even served as an altar boy. His mother was a strict Anglican, so it is clear that he was influenced by a family who was steeped in faith. Kony was a strong advocate of the 10 Commandments and, when organizing the Lord’s Resistance Army, he promised that his main goal was to conquer the Ugandan military and return the country to the basic premises of the “Big 10.” Hmm? It is an interesting commentary on his skewed faith to think that when he kidnapped children from their homes, he forced them to kill their own parents so they would not have a home to return to. So much for “Honor your mother and father!” The kids who were kidnapped were basically turned into “pack mules” and then trained as soldiers and the girls were used for “reproductive” reasons. The main way that the L.R.A. grew was the pride. That is a term for how dominating a lion is. A truly successful male lion will have a large “pride” of females and other subservient lions. This is the methodology for the L.R.A. A man’s army (pride) was judged on how many kids he had abducted and turned into killers and how many girls he had stolen and turned into “wives.” Again, if we go back to the Ten Commandments, that really shoots a hole in the “Thou shall not commit adultery” law. And, I suppose it is a fair assumption to say it is a violation of, “Thou shall not covet,” but, I think I can stop with the Bible analogies. We have already seen them distorted beyond reasonable doubt. The boys were put on the front line and were the first to be killed when facing down the Ugandan Army and the girls were given to the soldier who kidnapped them. Well, that is unless Kony wanted the girl. It is predicted that he had over 60 wives. This is, of course, speculation from the girls who were the lucky ones. But, I have personally met several girls who had been his wife and they were really not so lucky. I know young ladies with mouths cut off and tongues slashed because they tried to resist. It is a little bit like being one of King Henry VIII’s wives…not the best of circumstances, at best! Here is another leader suggesting that his views will actually liberate the people of Uganda from their sins and their immoral thoughts. Like Henry, Kony wanted to establish a government that was led by God in the way he thought it should be led. He believes he is receiving messages as a spiritual medium, but just which “medium” he hears from has never, nor will it ever, been established. In fact, because there is significant evidence that his funding comes from the government in Khartoum (remember Darfur), there is an increasing reliance on Muslim teachings that appear in his regime. Kony was approached by his own people from the Gulu District two years ago to “cease and desist” from his evil ways. Something that is very much a part of the Acholi Tribe is the need for reconciliation and restoration. In fact, it is “part and parcel” of the Acholi Tribe. Members of the Gulu District Community met with Kony at the first “Peace Talk” in Juba, which is located in the Southen Sudan. We happen to know two people who were at those talks. Retired Colonel Walter and District Speaker Martin were sent by the Ugandan government to talk to Kony and ask him to stop. Their message was, “You are forgiven…please stop.” This group arrived with a message of restoration and left with the promise of an immediate “cease and desist” from Kony. While the Ugandan delegation was serious that Kony and his group would be forgiven and, God forbid, offered asylum in the District, Kony did not take them up on this offer and, instead, moved his sadistic, terrorist ways into the neighboring country of the Congo. Kony has promised to “attend” numerous Peace Talks, but he also knows that he is a marked man, now. He has been indicted by the ICC and will, if he is ever captured, be tried for the atrocities he has committed against his own people. There are a plethora of stories that one can read about his savage ways. One that I happen to know is found at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5129350.stm. It is one of a dozen that I have heard about Kony and the beasts that support his movement. I wish I could say that he has “retired”; however, he is just as vigilant about killing the Congolese as he was about killing the Ugandans. In fact, you might want to check out the words, “Falling Whistles” to hear what he is doing in the Congo, along with other rebel armies who claim to be “working for the good of humankind.” I know that every person on this earth has a mission. My favorite book is Man’s Search for Meaning. And I believe that if everyone on this earth had the opportunity to do what he or she is meant to do, our world would be so very different. I also believe that each person has the right to self-actualize. I think the U.N.’s “Declaration of Human Rights,” adopted by the General Assembly on December 10, 1948 was right to declare unalienable rights of every citizen of this world. I think they just forgot that many people just don’t “play by the rules.” For example, when I pick up the Sports page of the local newspaper, I find an article about, say, soccer. Well, this article just assumes that I understand the rules of the game. Otherwise, the article doesn’t make sense. Tragically, I have found that I just flat don’t understand the rules of a lot of this game we call “life.” Because, for the “life” of me, I just do not understand how it is that people are starving to death, that people are literally dying of thirst, or that one person, in the name of religion, can wreak the type of sadistic havoc someone like Joseph Kony has wreaked on so many innocent lives...especially my own!