An unusual viral video depicting the story behind Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) leader Joseph Kony and his brutal practice of forcing young children into war has been watched by some 11 million people online. The half hour documentary produced by filmmaker Jason Russell for the Invisible Children charity is taking social media by storm but is attracting criticism from those working in policy development in Africa. Africa correspondent Andrew Harding reported that Joseph Kony is "something of a spent force" with only a few hundred soldiers but pressure is being put on the US government to find Kony and bring him to the Hague. Andrew Harding said that those critical of the campaign say this kind of approach may raise awareness but does not achieve much on the ground. They believe it is "putting pressure on the wrong people", he told the Today programme's John Humphrys, and could be seen as a sort of neo-colonialism in that it is the Ugandan government who should be lobbied, not the US.


posted 4416 days ago