By Frank Kamuntu
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has proposed a significant shift in the proceedings against Joseph Kony, requesting that the pre-trial hearing for the notorious Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leader be held in Northern Uganda, closer to the communities most affected by his crimes.
Specifically, the ICC office of the Prosecutor has urged the court’s judges to consider holding the hearing in either Gulu or Lira, cities that witnessed some of the worst violence during Kony’s reign of terror.
According to Ms. Maria Mabinti Kamara, the ICC Field Outreach Coordinator, the pre-trial hearing is scheduled for September 9, 2025. This request comes as part of broader efforts to make the proceedings more accessible to Ugandans who suffered directly from Kony’s atrocities.
As part of the planning, the ICC has instructed its registry to assess whether the court facilities in Gulu or Lira meet the necessary international standards to conduct such a significant event.
During her briefing on Thursday to journalists from the Northern Uganda Media Club, Kamara emphasized the importance of involving local communities in the justice process.
She also outlined a communication strategy that aims to keep people across the region, including neighboring countries like South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and the Central African Republic, informed about the developments in the case. This is crucial for ensuring that Kony, still a fugitive, is aware of the confirmation of the charges against him, and to strengthen the case’s legitimacy by keeping the affected populations informed.
Kony, who has been evading capture for over a decade, faces 36 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role in the brutal insurgency in Northern Uganda. These include abduction, murder, enslavement, and sexual violence, among other atrocities committed between 2002 and 2005.
Despite his elusive whereabouts, the ICC’s move to bring the proceedings closer to the heart of the conflict underscores a commitment to transparency and a desire for justice to be not just theoretical, but tangible and accessible to the people who lived through the trauma.
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