Ouganda - Dominic Ongwen, a kidnapped child raised in the bush by the beasts is being tried at ICC

Very disturbing and embarrassing is the presence of Dominic Ongwen at the ICC (International Criminal Court) at The Hague. He was kidnapped in his country, Uganda, by the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) in 1990 at the age of 10 when he was going to school.

After being abducted, he was brought up and trained in the bush by rebels’ fighters from LRA to become a child soldier. He mastered the art of fighting, of killing, of mutilating people, of kidnapping and enrolling children, and was very successful in it at the point he became one of the Commanders of the LRA.

Recently on January of this year, he surrendered to some armed forces in Central African Republic, and was handed to Ugandan authorities. Uganda’s President, Yoweri Museveni, who is a big critic of ICC and could have handled this case in the court of his country, rapidly handed him to the ICC.

What some people don’t understand and won’t, is that at the age of 35, there is still the 10 years-old abducted child of yore in the brutal, ill-famed killer Ongwen of today. In Dominic Ongwen, I see the monster people see, but I also see a lamb; in him I see a cruel perpetrator and an innocent victim.

Why did President Yoweri Museveni, who is very critical of ICC, hand Dominic Ongwen to this Court? There isn’t an easy or accurate answer to this question but there are many hypothesizes.

It might be that he wanted to embarrass the ICC. But also, the presidential polls are scheduled in Uganda for 2016 and this decision might be politically motivated? Or he solely wished Ongwen would speak up about the rebellion revealing officially their sponsors? We might go on and on indefinitely. Anyway, Museveni is an outstanding politician who did not act at random.

The world would write thousands of books and articles about the case of Dominic Ongwen, a 10 years old pupil who was abducted in Uganda as he was going to school, and was turned into a killing machine; witnesses and heartbroken victims would come forward and testify crying bitterly. But a very important question remains to be asked.

Who is indeed to blame or condemn in Ongwen case? The Ugandan authorities who did not give enough protection to the 10 years old pupil of yore, or the grownup Ongwen and the LRA he never chose to serve? In other words, who

will be tried and sentenced at ICC? The 10 years old innocent victim in the 35 years-old killer, Dominic Ongwen, or the adult criminal who imposed himself to the 10 years old victim of yore? This is a very disturbing and embarrassing case.

It is noticeable that world justice is not served. The international justice has failed and failed the world, and mostly the poor nations. Everywhere people are at war, fighting the wrong fights.

Real fights against terrorism and armed groups must start with investigations and crack down on those who arm and finance them. Unluckily, the world is just a dark den of hypocrisy. Dominic Ongwen case would not be an opportunity to serve justice; many times, ICC has openly shown its partiality and limitations.

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