Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 7, No. 2, 2008, Page 36
The LRA rarely teaches new recruits its main political and religious goals. It is impossible to
know how many committed child soldiers in the LRA know the group‘s goals. Most escapee
children know little more than the LRA‘s goal to capture the Ugandan capital, Kampala
(HRW 1997, 30). Many escapees testify to their confusion regarding the LRA‘s complicated
beliefs and its secrecy, despite the group‘s expectations for children to respect its rituals:
‗They prayed a lot, but they didn‘t pray like normal Christians. Sometimes
they would use rosaries, but sometimes they would bow down like Muslims.
They said they had malaika [spirit, angel]. They said the malaika said there
would be a terrible fight, and the government would be overthrown. After
that, they said we would be released. Sometimes they would gather us and
try to convince us to believe them.
They believed in their local gods, and they didn‘t want us to learn about their
malaika. They discouraged us from asking questions about their beliefs. If you
asked too many questions they would become cruel.‘ (Molly, seventeen-years
old, in HRW 1997, 31)
Molly‘s testimony displays the LRA‘s secrecy regarding its beliefs, as well as her lack of
understanding of the rituals that she witnessed.
Even without understanding the LRA‘s motives, some returnees internalize aspects of the
LRA‘s violent lifestyle. Information about children who internalize the LRA‘s morals and
choose to remain within the LRA is difficult to obtain, probably because these children are
isolated from outsiders and often remain soldiers until they are killed. It is impossible to
assume that all children within the LRA wish to escape as badly as those who try or succeed
in leaving. It is possible, however, that many children who remain within the LRA are simply
playing a role until they are confident they can escape. Nevertheless, some children who
remain with the LRA appear to have a desire to kill and to remain in the group, which may
result from their experience within the group and their wish to impress their commanders. A
World Vision counselor (at the World Vision camp for escapees) related a story in which a
man who was carjacked on the road to Kitgum overheard a child begging his commander to
let him kill the man because he had not killed anybody yet (Cheney 2005, 44). Children, like
the child in this example, have new goals and values that they approach in a unique
emotional, cognitive, and motivational manner (Hundeide 2003, 119).
Some children, however, are aware of Kony‘s goal of annihilating and rebuilding the Acholi
population:
‗...we Acholi are very bad people, and we must all become better before we
can rule in our land. This is what the Holy Spirit has ordered. This is why
some people must be killed: we must become pure, and many Acholi do not
follow the orders of the Holy Spirit anymore. Many of them are working with
jok [spirits]. So they must be killed. This is what the rebels told me.‘ (George,
fourteen, quoted in HRW 1997, 34)
With this doctrine, any atrocity against the Acholi is legitimized. Some children who know
about the LRA‘s goals to prevent the apocalypse can justify their role in murdering civilians.
Nevertheless, other children who learn of the LRA‘s goals often do not understand the
contradictions between the group‘s plan to oust the government and its actions against
northern Ugandan civilians, because most northern Ugandans do not support the
government (Hovil and Lomo 2004, 25).
Discussion
Under the same regime, many children carry different attitudes regarding their involvement,
even when they share similar behaviors. Karsten Hundeide (2003, 115-116) identifies that
The LRA rarely teaches new recruits its main political and religious goals. It is impossible to
know how many committed child soldiers in the LRA know the group‘s goals. Most escapee
children know little more than the LRA‘s goal to capture the Ugandan capital, Kampala
(HRW 1997, 30). Many escapees testify to their confusion regarding the LRA‘s complicated
beliefs and its secrecy, despite the group‘s expectations for children to respect its rituals:
‗They prayed a lot, but they didn‘t pray like normal Christians. Sometimes
they would use rosaries, but sometimes they would bow down like Muslims.
They said they had malaika [spirit, angel]. They said the malaika said there
would be a terrible fight, and the government would be overthrown. After
that, they said we would be released. Sometimes they would gather us and
try to convince us to believe them.
They believed in their local gods, and they didn‘t want us to learn about their
malaika. They discouraged us from asking questions about their beliefs. If you
asked too many questions they would become cruel.‘ (Molly, seventeen-years
old, in HRW 1997, 31)
Molly‘s testimony displays the LRA‘s secrecy regarding its beliefs, as well as her lack of
understanding of the rituals that she witnessed.
Even without understanding the LRA‘s motives, some returnees internalize aspects of the
LRA‘s violent lifestyle. Information about children who internalize the LRA‘s morals and
choose to remain within the LRA is difficult to obtain, probably because these children are
isolated from outsiders and often remain soldiers until they are killed. It is impossible to
assume that all children within the LRA wish to escape as badly as those who try or succeed
in leaving. It is possible, however, that many children who remain within the LRA are simply
playing a role until they are confident they can escape. Nevertheless, some children who
remain with the LRA appear to have a desire to kill and to remain in the group, which may
result from their experience within the group and their wish to impress their commanders. A
World Vision counselor (at the World Vision camp for escapees) related a story in which a
man who was carjacked on the road to Kitgum overheard a child begging his commander to
let him kill the man because he had not killed anybody yet (Cheney 2005, 44). Children, like
the child in this example, have new goals and values that they approach in a unique
emotional, cognitive, and motivational manner (Hundeide 2003, 119).
Some children, however, are aware of Kony‘s goal of annihilating and rebuilding the Acholi
population:
‗...we Acholi are very bad people, and we must all become better before we
can rule in our land. This is what the Holy Spirit has ordered. This is why
some people must be killed: we must become pure, and many Acholi do not
follow the orders of the Holy Spirit anymore. Many of them are working with
jok [spirits]. So they must be killed. This is what the rebels told me.‘ (George,
fourteen, quoted in HRW 1997, 34)
With this doctrine, any atrocity against the Acholi is legitimized. Some children who know
about the LRA‘s goals to prevent the apocalypse can justify their role in murdering civilians.
Nevertheless, other children who learn of the LRA‘s goals often do not understand the
contradictions between the group‘s plan to oust the government and its actions against
northern Ugandan civilians, because most northern Ugandans do not support the
government (Hovil and Lomo 2004, 25).
Discussion
Under the same regime, many children carry different attitudes regarding their involvement,
even when they share similar behaviors. Karsten Hundeide (2003, 115-116) identifies that
