GOVERNING THE VULNERABLE SELF AT HOME AND ABROAD: PEACE AND JUSTICE IN NORTHERN UGANDA AND "KONY 2012

Abstract

On March 5, 2012, a US-based group called Invisible Children posted a video online, "KONY 2012, " which called for US military support for the Ugandan army so that it could capture the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army to bring him to justice at the International Criminal Court (ICC). The video received attention and criticism from various parties, including international NGOs that had been involved in previous debates over peace and justice in northern Uganda. By looking back at past efforts of the international NGOs to end the conflict and achieve justice for the Acholi, this paper attempts to explain why the international NGOs took KONY 2012 seriously, why their positions on the ICC differed, and why they generally maintained their distance from Invisible Children while trying to learn from its marketing success. The paper demonstrates that KONY 2012 and the general issue of peace and justice in northern Uganda were not only connected with international NGOs' therapeutic visions of governance in northern Uganda but also related to governance in their own homelands. At the same time, the paper unveils the fragile and unstable nature of the therapeutic vision of governance, both in the Acholi sub-region and in northern societies.