Invisible Children, Kony, same sex stuff and all news that’s fit to print

A few days ago, I poked around the web for what news there was that would interest me about Uganda. Joseph Kony, al Shabaab, homosexuality, forged yellow fever cards.

Twitter was red hot with the hashtags #stopkony and #kony2012, the work of Invisible Children. This American group was promoting a 30-minute film, part of its campaign to capture or kill Kony and thus stop his LRA abusing children. Al Jazeera, BBC, etc, were all on the story Thursday.

A furious debate was raging on social media – almost entirely amongst non-Ugandans. Some were denouncing Invisible Children on its facts and its expenditure of donated money. The organisation, which is soliciting more dollars with the current effort, was defending its honour.

Some comments drew my attention.

Mary Eliz. Carlton: @Bible_Time go on YouTube and watch “invisible children” and follow @invisible please help!!! #KONY2012 needs to be a trend! Save the kids!

Valerie: Donate to Invisible Children project on CrowdRise to help improve lives. RT to everyone. shar.es/gZGk6 Thanks :)

Allie Gonino: I just made a donation to Invisible Children for Kony 2012kony2012.com #StopKony

Oprah Winfrey was being harassed and she fired off: Everybody who’s tweeting me about #LRA I’ve helped. Gave Major dollars had Invisible Children on my show 2x. showing#STOPKONY Mar 18 #OWN

Ayesha: Invisible Children is an unreliable organisation, sending rich white kids to Africa isn’t a solution charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=…

Dan B: This Invisible Children thing is sadly a perfect example of something the internet is really bad at. Which is reacting before researching.

Matt Binder: I would like to see all those tweeting about “Invisible Children” and “#stopkony” first point out Uganda on a map.

Ashton_Slawinski: @AaronRodgers12 PLEASE RT and go support Invisible Children! We must make #KONY2012 known worldwide!! #makehimfamous#endthewar

Ashton got that wish. When I checked in Thursday, millions had watched the video, which by the way comes off dated. There is nothing in it about northern Uganda 2012 or even 2007.

But so the world knows about Kony and the LRA. Now what? I get it that Invisible Children would like the American government to help out, possibly deploy more than the 100 military advisers it has already. Given their record finding Osama bin Laden, that is another decade at the minimum.

And why doesn’t this film acknowledge the efforts of others – local and foreign?

From the bad guys of the LRA to the bad guys of al Shabaab in Somalia, where Ugandan troops have been leading international efforts to bring peace since 2007 – something that was only possible because Kony had bolted and the UPDF was no longer stretched at home.

Annoyingly, it is the big boys stealing the limelight. The Ugandans who continue to pay the ultimate price are quickly becoming a footnote. The statement issued at the recent London Conference on Somalia did not even mention Uganda by name! The same might hold at the next conference in, yes, Istanbul.

If it weren’t for the UPDF primarily, Turkish PM Erdogan, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and British Foreign Secretary William Hague would not have followed one another into Mogadishu in the last several months. Let alone Turkish Airlines launching a biweekly service into Mogadishu.

When all is quiet and the other powers have cut deals with Somali authorities, Ugandans will still be left with the shot end of the stick. We helped the South Sudanese but we still need visas – at a cost of $50 – to go there. We hosted ANC camps here, and we are still harassed getting visas to South Africa. Nationals of countries that did next-to-nothing have it easy. If President Museveni must promote pan-Africanism by shedding Ugandan blood, Ugandans must get something in return.

Speaking of which, the spat between South Africa and Nigeria over fake Nigeria-issued yellow fever cards and retaliatory denial of entry of each other’s nationals reminds me of our own situation. Here we do not forge the cards, we simply bribe to get genuine ones without getting the jab. Which is worse?

At last week’s sitting of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, talk of gay rights had delegates from several African and Arab countries walk out. Reuters could not resist dragging in Uganda: “The report said 76 countries among the UN’s 192 members had laws criminalising homosexual behaviour. At least five – in particular Iran – provide for the death penalty while efforts are under way in Uganda to introduce the same punishment.”

Thank you Mr David Bahati.

Mr Tabaire is a media consultant with the African Centre for Media Excellence.
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