Focus on Africa: Who is Uganda's Joseph Kony?

Africa Daily / BBC World Service

Date: September 12, 2025
Host: Audrey Brown

Episode Overview

This episode focuses on Joseph Kony, the notorious Ugandan rebel leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), recently the subject of renewed attention at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The episode provides context on Kony’s background and crimes, explores efforts to bring him to justice, and highlights broader issues facing the continent: combating childhood obesity in South Africa and the evolving role of women in Malawian politics ahead of upcoming elections.

I. Who Is Joseph Kony? (01:23–08:28)

A. Background and Charges Against Kony

• Kony’s Origins:

  • Born in early 1960s, Odek village, Northern Uganda; started as a Catholic altar boy.
  • Later adapted a blend of Catholicism and local traditions as spiritual justification for violence.

• LRA Atrocities:

  • Founded and led the Lord’s Resistance Army—initially popular for defending the Acholi people, but support evaporated as the LRA committed widespread violence against civilians, including their own communities.
  • "An estimated, according to the prosecution, 60,000 children were abducted by the LRA. Many of them subjected to sexual violence. More than 100,000 people were killed during this period."
    — Anna Holligan, BBC Hague Correspondent [03:36]

• Crimes detailed by the ICC:

  • Facing 39 counts—murder, sexual enslavement, rape, torture, use of child soldiers, and societal destruction.

B. ICC Proceedings Without Kony (04:12–06:05)

• Kony remains at large; his location unknown for two decades—possibly in the Central African Republic or killed.

• ICC held a hearing to determine if enough evidence exists to send the case to trial, played to Ugandans on large screens in community space to demonstrate justice-in-action.

• "It's unprecedented. That's the answer. We don't know where he is. We don't even know if he's alive or not."
  — Anna Holligan [04:22]

• Defense represented by appointed counsel (Peter Haynes), who argued against proceeding in absentia.

• Victims participated through legal representation, highlighting community trauma and ongoing societal impact.

  • "The prosecution had talked about...Kony had been responsible for ripping apart the fabric of society and people still struggling to put it back together again, even after all of these years."
    — Anna Holligan [05:27]

• ICC must decide within 60 days whether to send the case to trial, dismiss, or ask for more evidence—proceedings cannot truly move forward unless Kony is apprehended.

II. Survivors' Testimonies and Personal Memories (08:06–09:40)

• Benson Ongom (journalist, grew up in Gulu):
  Remembers peak violence in the 1990s—villages burned, people maimed, economic activity brought to a halt.

• Pauline Akello (former abductee, age 12):

  • Vividly describes years in captivity: forced labor, sexual slavery, constant fear.
  • Shares Kony’s claims of being guided by a "holy spirit" commanding total destruction.
  • "He used to tell us that he has spirit, you know, a holy spirit that guides him in everything that he do. Sometimes he gives Hoda like kill everything you see, whether being animals, human beings kill anything you can see."
    — Pauline Akello [08:47]

III. A Rare Attempt at Peace: Speaking With Kony (09:40–18:30)

A. Uganda's Strategy: Reaching Out Via Kony’s Mother

• Judith Obina Okumu (circumstances and feelings):
  • Tasked (by President Museveni) with establishing contact with Kony through his mother, Nora Annec.
  • Reticence and anxiety at undertaking the perilous task:
    • "Wow, that was a bullet. I can imagine that was a bullet in my head. I was just completely scared. I was in shock."
      — Judith Okumu [10:58]
  • Gained Kony’s mother's trust through sustained support, leading to the idea that a maternal visit could broker peace.

B. The Meeting in the Forest

• Personal impressions and tension:

  • Okumu describes deep fear on meeting Kony in Garamba forest, relying on his mother's presence for protection.
    • "As soon as Kony was trying to come towards us, the only best thing I could do...was to make sure I go behind the mum."
      — Judith Okumu [14:31]
  • Kony’s emotional reaction:
    • "He looked at us and he only said one thing. He said, mom, you have come...I could see that he had tears in his eyes. So I was in my mind, I thought, okay, he's human after all."
      — Judith Okumu [15:19]

• Outcomes:

  • Kony agreed not to launch further attacks in Uganda from 2007 onwards, shifting LRA operations outside Uganda.
  • Okumu reflects on why Kony didn’t surrender:
    • "For a man who has been a rebel for so many years, and he knows definitely the law is waiting for him...It's not just easy to pack your bags one morning and you just walk into Uganda."
      — Judith Okumu [18:47]

IV. The LRA’s Legacy and Uganda’s Recovery (18:30–19:27)

• The LRA lost influence; many commanders dead or in prison for war crimes.
• Uganda has seen relative peace in the north, but Kony remains at large and LRA splinters continue to destabilize other regions (Congo, Sudan, Central African Republic).

V. Africa Today: Health & Politics

1. Tackling Childhood Obesity in South Africa (19:27–28:39)

A. UNICEF Report and School Innovations

• Overweight/obesity among children is a growing "crisis," driven by cheaper processed foods and economic changes.
• Cairo School of Inquiry (Johannesburg):

  • Implements a vegetarian food policy; initial student resistance, now embraced for its health and educational value.

  • "When the kids start at the school and they discover that they can only bring in vegetarian food...it's an opportunity for learning."
    — Mayeni Jones [20:52]

  • Parents encouraged to send whole foods; processed foods, sweets, and fizzy drinks are discouraged.

B. Systemic Challenges and Policy Responses

• The majority of schools can't afford such policies; most rely on processed food for affordability and quantity.

• Gilbert Chitauudzi (UNICEF):

  • Argues that healthy eating is limited by lack of access and poverty, not just individual choice:
    • "How do you expect an individual to live a healthier lifestyle and also to eat healthy if the environment does not enable them to do that?"
      — Gilbert Chitauudzi [25:31]

• Government measures:

  • Sugar-sweetened beverage tax (2018), regulations on salt, sugar, and fat, public health campaigns.
  • Regulation targets early life (baby formula), clearer packaging for nutritional info.

• Wider African Trends:

  • Rapid spread of obesity in growing economies—prevalent in Mauritania, Eswatini, Ghana, Gabon, Cameroon, Botswana.

2. Women in Politics: Malawi’s Electoral Gender Gap (29:53–37:17)

A. Underrepresentation and Barriers

• Women are the majority of voters (57%) but underrepresented as candidates and MPs.
  • Cost of nomination is high, though now halved for female councillor and MP candidates after advocacy.
• "If there was no requirement to pay nomination fees, I'd contest as a counselor." — Unnamed Malawian woman [32:08]

B. Efforts by Civil Society

• The Women’s Manifesto Movement (led by Maggie Katuera Banda) offers financial and training support to aspiring female politicians.
  • "Those women have, are being trained on what it is to be a leader..."
    — Nomsa Maseko [33:16]

C. Progress and Hurdles

• Slight rise in female MPs; skepticism persists about whether women running mates are chosen for optics or meaningful inclusion.

  • "Malawians think that the women running mates...is just for convenience." — Nomsa Maseko [34:21]

• Helen Chabunya (party vice president):

  • Articulates hope for a future with greater female representation:
    • "Our generation...is going to ensure that this never happens again. We're working towards breaking down those barriers."
      — Helen Chabunya [34:59]

• Election atmosphere is muted; economic hardship and fuel shortages dampen typical campaigning and voter enthusiasm.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “He used to tell us that he has a holy spirit that guides him in everything that he do...I do not want to see anything living.”
  — Pauline Akello (Survivor), [08:47]

• “It's unprecedented. ... We don't even know if he's alive or not.”
  — Anna Holligan (On Kony’s absence at ICC), [04:22]

• "Wow, that was a bullet. ... I was just completely scared. I was in shock."
  — Judith Okumu (On being tasked to contact Kony), [10:58]

• "If all schools were to emulate our intention of being thoughtful and conscious of health...the conversations that would emerge from the food policy would enormously benefit the children's health."
  — Mark Loon (Head Teacher, Cairo School), [22:51]

• “How do you expect an individual to live a healthier lifestyle...if the environment does not enable them to do that?”
  — Gilbert Chitauudzi (UNICEF SA), [25:31]

• “Our generation...is going to ensure that this never happens again. We're working towards breaking down those barriers.”
  — Helen Chabunya (Malawian politician), [34:59]

Key Timestamps

• 01:23 – Introduction to Joseph Kony case at the ICC
• 03:36 – Scale and brutality of LRA atrocities
• 08:47 – Survivor, Pauline Akello’s story
• 09:40–18:30 – Judith Okumu on peace attempt with Kony via his mother
• 19:27 – LRA’s decline and Uganda’s recovery
• 19:27–28:39 – Childhood obesity in South Africa: problem and policy
• 29:53–37:17 – Women in Malawian politics: barriers and activism

Summary Conclusion

This episode uses the lens of Joseph Kony’s legacy to explore the complexity of post-conflict justice, the intergenerational trauma borne by survivors, and the need for structural solutions—whether addressing the aftermath of violence, public health crises, or gender inequality in politics. Through eyewitness accounts, institutional analysis, and frontline reporting, Focus on Africa offers a rich, ground-level view of Africa’s most urgent challenges and the ongoing quest for peace, well-being, and equitable representation.