‘If Kony came back, I would marry him’

A lot has been said and written about the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, Joseph Kony, yet surprisingly little is known about him. In the third part of the series “Who is Joseph Kony?’, one of his wives spoke to Els De Temmerman about the man who went to the bush in 1987 claiming the Holy Spirit had sent him, and started a rebellion against the Government.


EVELYN, a pretty, young, girl from Gulu, spent almost half of her life in captivity. She was abducted in 1994 at the age of 11, and was rescued by the UPDF on January 21, 2005 during a fight in Kitgum. She returned with two children from her commander, Joseph Kony. Her third child was left behind in the bush. She doesn’t know what happened to her. Below is her testimony about her life with the man against whom there is an international warrant of arrest for crimes against humanity:

“I was abducted on August 4, 1994, on my way home from school, together with my uncle. My uncle is still there up to now. We were tied by the waist and taken to the bush. At first, I stayed in the group of Otti Lagony. After one month, Kony himself came and picked me from Lagony’s house. He said I should take care of his children.

I stayed with Kony from September 1994 until my escape in 2005. I was taken to Sudan, where I first worked as a babysitter. Then, in 1996, when I was 13, Kony turned me into his wife. He called me into his house one night. There was no way I could refuse. If you refused once, the second time he would send his bodyguard who would force you. He could be very violent. My only worry was that I was too young and unfit for a man.

He was a good man, very social and talkative. He tried to look after us well, even when circumstances became difficult. He would store food, given by the government of Sudan in a hidden place, for his family. We were better treated than the others, at least in the beginning. We received better food and medical care and were better housed. At one time, we lived in stone houses in Juba.

I was beaten several times for provoking him. The first time, he ordered his security men to give me 100 strokes because I refused to bring him bathing water. The second time, I received 25 strokes because the children of my co-wives were crying. And the third time, I was beaten 150 times because my head was swollen and I refused to continue carrying ammunition received from the Sudan government.

Afterwards, I was put in detention for two weeks. Beating was something common in the bush, almost like part of life. In fact, the first 10 strokes were painful, but afterwards you didn’t feel anything any more.

By the year 2000, Kony had at least 27 wives. But there were many more, as some were living in other places. We would stay with the co-wives in a fenced place, containing several huts. Each hut housed two or more wives. We co-operated well and didn’t quarrel, except for the eldest wife, Fatuma, who was an officer and very rude. She was always suspicious and jealous and would often beat us.

Sometimes, Kony would walk over and select a girl for the night. Other times, he would just send his security guards. Those who had their periods were isolated and not allowed to cook, serve food or fetch water. When you were called, you would stay in his house up to morning. Before going back to your place, you had to bring him water for bathing, clean up the house, remove his dirty clothes and wash them.

Kony could show a lot of love but he could also be very rude. His mood changed depending on the news he received from the battlefield, or depending on the spirit that possessed him. Some spirits came with a lot of calm, others were violent. Whenever he was possessed by the spirit, his appearance changed. He would speak in English and even Arabic. At times, the words of the spirit were recorded or written down.

He predicted things that happened. For example, in 2000, he said the spirit, Juma Oris, had told him that by 2004, most of the LRA would go back home. When they were going for an operation, the fighters would be sprinkled with holy water, mixed with sheanut oil and grounded stones, which would protect them from the bullets. The fight would then be less fierce. His aim, he said, was to create a new Acholi generation.

“Those in the bush are the new Acholi with a new culture,” he used to say.
In the end, I did not really fear him. My only worry was that he was older and bigger. In any case, even when you feared, you had no choice but to put it aside, take courage and do what you were told.

When the order was given to move for an operation, you just moved. Remaining behind would mean death. I witnessed rebels being beaten, some to death, for defying orders.

It is only since I came back and heard that most of my close relatives were killed by the rebels, that the name LRA made me fear. When we were there, we did not know what was going on. We were never present at the meetings with his commanders. We were not involved in any of the operations.

Kony himself is full of fear. He fears that when he comes back, he will be killed. Because of that fear, he may never accept peace and surrender. When he called me by satellite phone after my return, he wanted to know how people felt about us when we reintegrated into our villages, what the response of the community towards us was. He said he had heard that people were throwing stones at us but I told him it was not true.

He called me four times after I came back. The first time, we talked for eight hours, from 11:00am to 7:00pm. He inquired about the children and about his other wives. He wanted to know how they were captured and how they are living now. He stopped calling me in August last year.

I miss him. I think of him regularly. If he came out, I would marry him. Everything that happened was God’s plan. My abduction, my marriage to him was the Almighty’s will. I believe he is a great prophet. Whatever he predicts becomes reality. I only wish him to be alive.”