[allAfrica.com]


We Can Forgive, But Don't Glorify Kony

New Vision (Kampala)
OPINION
September 18, 2006
Posted to the web September 19, 2006

By Eva Mwine
Kampala
Like a starched white linen tablecloth over a bloody butcher's table, we are
witnessing the reconstruction of the face of Kony. Seemingly sane, educated,
law-abiding citizens from the northern region and elsewhere have crept out of
the woodwork and shamelessly affiliated themselves with Kony and everything he
stands for.
With their words and their despicable choice to jump on to his bandwagon, they
are trying to justify and legitimise a cause that does not exist.
They are attempting to mould a moral sheath to cover the bloodstained sword
that has massacred the Acholi people for the last two decades.
As we look on in total amazement, we cannot help but ask: who will reconstruct
the lips and limbs of the victims of Kony's insanity? Who will restore the lost
youth of the abducted children, the little girls turned rebels' "wives"?
The defining mandate of Kony's new political arm should not be so much the
desire to walk the corridors of state, pursuing selfish interests. They would
be most useful on the ground and in the trenches of the rehabilitation effort,
guiding government initiatives.
As every effort is made to seize the moment and end the affliction of the
people of northern Uganda, we the community of witnesses, have many questions.
Should we be talking peace?
Yes! Should we have agreed to a cessation of hostilities? Absolutely! But,
should we be looking at Kony through the new and rather rosy-coloured political
lenses? No, absolutely not! The moral conscience of the nation is undergoing a
test as we are enticed into the shades of gray that lie between what is
politically expedient, what is right and what is down right wrong.
How long will we remain silent as Kony basks in glorious accolades and as, by
implication, our national army is demonized. Brave men and women of the UPDF
have lost their lives in this senseless conflict, a conflict that Olara Otunnu
now brands a "war of convenience".
Ugandans have compromised where compromise should have had no place, they are
trying to forgive the almost unforgivable, by embracing the Acholi traditional
systems of justice and reconciliation (Mato Oput). As we grapple with Kony the
madman; must we now be expected to also forgive Olara Otunnu for fanning the
smouldering embers of mistrust that has polarised the north and south of this
country with his outrageous claims of genocide?
Alterman, a renowned political writer once said "Public statements are no
longer fact based but operational. Realities and political narratives are
constructed to serve a purpose, dismantled and the show moves on". Can we
really sit back and let the show move on reshuffling the historical facts of
the last two decades. Accurate accounts of history should document Kony as the
villain that he is, and nothing short of this.
At the risk of being branded an apologist for this government and for the UPDF,
I will venture to ask: how many would have got it all right given the
combination of the absurd and the bizarre which have dogged this conflict from
the beginning?
Our national army is a force that has evolved from the humble rag-tag
beginnings of the NRA into one of the most professional and disciplined forces
on the continent. And now as they sit at the table to negotiate with Kony and
all that he represents, they are writing yet another chapter of their very
impressive history. It demonstrates a level of humility that comes only with
great strength. This is when we tell the men from the boys, as the saying goes.
It's never over until it's over. As we wait to see what every new day of the
peace talks brings, let us heed the words of Martin Luther, the reformationist:
"Peace, but truth at all costs!"
The writer is a citizen of Uganda


===============================================================================
  Copyright © 2006 New Vision. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
                        Global Media (allAfrica.com).
===============================================================================