Now that the Kony 2012 campaign is all over the internet with over 2 million facebook fans on the Kony 2012 campaign fanpage and Millions of views on Youtube in just three days, we need to know the background of this campaign.
Kony is infact the name of an african warlord called Joseph Kony who rose to power in 1987 when he stood against the Ugandan government in a bid to take over the country. His group is called the LRA or Lord’s Resistance Army. Contrary to the name, his mission and his motives have nothing to do with religion or any holy purposes, rather his movement is hell bent to take over the Ugandan country and depose the current government. According to the background briefing from an organization called enough project:
Though they are often portrayed as a Christian fundamentalist group bent on establishing a government in Uganda based on the Ten Commandments, religion no longer practically serves as a raison d’être for the LRA; rather it is used selectively to ensure adherence to military discipline and create an environment where commanders are respected and feared…. The rebel group is notorious for murder, torture, mutilation, rape, widespread abductions of children and adults, and pillaging.
Kony is often depicted in local media reports as a messianic figure fighting for the holy cause. He once told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation(ABC) in 2006 that ” many” spirits often speak to him, telling him “You, Mr. Joseph, go and take this thing and that thing.” LRA’s initial agenda was to defend the rights of an ethnic group, but lost much support through its thuggery. When they had shortage of recruits for their army, they turned towards kidnapping children.LRA has over 30,000 Child soldiers, almost all of them being kidnapped from ugandan villages at young age and made to fight for the group. The female children are made to work as sex slaves for the group.
International Response
Before the movement started by invisible children to make Kony “famous”, he was little known among the people or the western governments. The US government simply avoided the issue because it didnt concide with their foreign interests. However, due to the continuous rallies and publicity stunts by members of the invisible children, President Obama dispatched 100 US marines to Uganda as “advisors” to the Ugandan Armed forces. Specifically, the American troops are tasked with assisting in “the removal from the battlefield” of Joseph Kony and other senior leaders of the Lord’s Resistance Army, or LRA, Obama said in a letter to the leaders of the House and Senate. Although the troops will be equipped for combat, officials specified that their principal role would be advisory.”
The motive of Kony 2012 Campaign
The motive behind the Kony 2012 campaign is now to make kony famous all over the world, and give him celebrity like publicity. This will ensure that everyone knows how big the issue is and that he needs to be stopped. The 2012 is destined to be the year in which Kony will be caught and brought to justice. You can play your part by seeing the video below and sharing this article with your friends and social circle. Here is the video:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc[/youtube]
Morever you can do the following:
Join TRI or Donate to Invisible Children: bit.ly/yp5Ffv
Purchase KONY 2012 products: invisiblechildrenstore.myshopify.com/
Sign the Pledge: causes.com/causes/227-invisible-children
