Joseph Kony

Joseph Kony is the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda and one of the most wanted terrorists in the world. He is allegedly responsible for the deaths of thousands and the rape, kidnapping and or enslavement of an estimated 20,000 children. He forces some of these children to fight in his "resistance." Kony and his army have been fighting the government of Uganda for more than twenty years.

Joseph Kony was born in Atyak, Uganda on September 18, 1964. He was raised Catholic and was even an altar boy. People who knew him as a boy say that he was bright and loved to dance. Somewhere along the way, Joseph Kony seems to have become a monster. He established the Lord's Resistance Army in 1987 and has been spreading violence and terror in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo ever since.

Religion is at the forefront of Joseph Kony's resistance movement. He claims his goal is to overthrow the government in Uganda and establish a government that enforces the Ten Commandments-which will become the national law. Joseph Kony also claims that eight angels aid him. These angels hail from the United States, Sudan, China, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He also claims that he is a prophet of God.

Kony claims that he will enforce the Ten Commandments as the law in Sudan, if he overthrows the government. It does not appear as if he has told people that he and his men will be exempted from these rules. Nevertheless, he has broken at least four of the Ten Commandments extensively.

The sixth Commandment is "You shall not murder." Joseph Kony is certainly guilty of breaking this law. The seventh Commandment is "You shall not commit adultery." Joseph Kony is said to have at least 60 wives, most of them child slaves. God did not say that you cannot have child sex slaves as wives, but he made it clear that you cannot commit adultery. Kony is certainly guilty of cheating on all of his wives. The eighth Commandment is "You shall not steal." Joseph Kony is most likely guilty of stealing or commanding the theft of hundreds of thousands of children. It is hard to tell what else he may have stolen because it is so hard to look past the fact that he is robbing people of their children. The 10th Commandment is "You shall not covet [. . .] anything that is your neighbor's. Joseph Kony obviously covets his neighbor's children and their freedom. He also covets the control his government has. In short, Joseph Kony is an abominable sinner and hypocrite.

As mentioned above, the LRA receives assistance from Angels through Joseph Kony. Kony claims that these angels are of varying nationalities. None of his followers seems to have caught on to the fact that Catholic angels do not have a nationality. They are not human. Joseph Kony is either a raving lunatic or a liar.

The LRA is a resistance movement of the ilk that has come to be expected in Africa. In the United States, when you think of rebellion, you think of the American Revolution and the mostly good men who fought in it. Civilians were rarely targeted, unless they were rebels and children were not stolen and raped. Unfortunately, this is all too common in many African nations that are plagued with rebellion. African rebellions can typically be summed up in one word-terror. Countries often survive wars only to trade their corrupt government for a corrupt government that is guilty of horrendous war crimes. The same probably will not happen in Sudan. Efforts are being made to arrest Kony and at least five of his officers. Even without an arrest, the possibility of him assuming control is slim.

As of 2005, Joseph Kony and five of his officers have arrest warrants out against them by the International Criminal Court. As of 2008, Joseph Kony is on the U.S. Treasury Departments list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. In 2010, United States President Barack Obama signed the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act. He had this to say about the act, "The legislation crystallizes the commitment of the United States to help bring an end to the brutality and destruction that have been the hallmark of the LRA." He had this to say about the LRA, "By any measure, its [the LRA's] actions are an affront to human dignity."

Sources

International Criminal Court-Uganda, retrieved 10/4/10, icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC/Situations+and+Cases/Situations/situation+ICC+0204

Joseph Kony, retrieved 10/4/10, nndb.com/people/398/000022332