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Kony's hearing will proceed in his absentia
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International News Desk
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has opened a hearing against fugitive Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony, two decades after his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) gained international notoriety for atrocities committed in northern Uganda. The hearing, which began on Tuesday (today), is known as a “confirmation of charges” and marks the court’s first-ever proceedings held in absentia.
Kony faces 39 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity in connection with the LRA’s campaign against the Ugandan government between 2002 and 2005. Prosecutors allege the campaign was marked by widespread rape, torture, and the abduction of children.
Kony has evaded capture since the ICC first issued an indictment in 2005. His case is seen as a test for other proceedings where the likelihood of arresting suspects remains distant, including those involving Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The hearing is expected to last three days, during which prosecutors will outline their case. Judges will then decide whether to confirm the charges. However, Kony cannot be tried unless he is in ICC custody.
“Everything that happens at the ICC is precedent for the next case,” said Michael Scharf, an international law professor at Case Western Reserve University, in an interview with The Associated Press.
Born in 1961 in Odek village, northern Uganda, Kony was once a Catholic altar boy. He later claimed to be a spirit medium and used religious rituals—alongside violence and torture—to maintain control over his followers.
The LRA’s insurgency against the Ugandan government began in the 1980s but only captured global attention in 2012 when the #Kony2012 campaign went viral on social media.
By that time, the LRA had been forced out of Uganda and was operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, and South Sudan. According to the United Nations, the group’s actions killed at least 100,000 people, displaced about 2.5 million, and included mass child abductions.
Survivors in Uganda are closely following the ICC proceedings. Among them is Everlyn Ayo, 39, whose school was attacked by LRA fighters when she was just five years old.
“The rebels raided the school, killed and cooked our teachers in big drums, and we were forced to eat their remains,” Ayo told AFP. “Many times, when we returned to the village, we would find blood-soaked bodies. Seeing all that blood as a child traumatised me deeply.”
The ICC has faced mounting political pressure from Washington over its investigations, particularly into alleged war crimes in Gaza. Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration previously sanctioned the ICC after it issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Last month, the United States announced a new round of sanctions targeting ICC officials, the latest move in a continuing campaign of pressure against the court.
Torch Media and News Agencies
