文章基本信息

标题：The Role of Spirit Messages in African Conflicts the Case of Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda
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作者：Paul Sturges
期刊名称：The Open Information Science Journal
电子版ISSN：1874-947X
出版年度：2011
卷号：3
页码：76-79
DOI：10.2174/1874947X01103010076
出版社：Bentham Science Publishers Ltd
摘要：
Whilst African civil conflicts are usually presented in the media as either political struggles, terrorism or mere banditry, in some at least there is a substantial spiritual element. Conflicts Zimbabwe, Mozambique and elsewhere in African have been shown to contain highly significant contributions from spirit forces intermediated by mediums, traditional healers, and prophets. Aspects of the Acholi insurgency in Northern Uganda have been initiated and led by spirit mediums, notably Alice Auma and Joseph Kony. Because Kony’s career as an insurgent leader has been marked by atrocity and the lack of an explicit political programme, he has often been dismissed as a terrorist. It is argued here that he at least deserves the status of ‘social bandit’ as defined by Hobsbawm, and that his role as a voice for spirit messages is still a significant factor. It is concluded that without recognition of the role of spirit messages in African conflicts these conflicts will be imperfectly understood and their resolution will be correspondingly more problematic.