Role of cultist religion in the Ugandan civil wars
Date
2013
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University for Peace Africa Programme, Addis Ababa, ET
Abstract
In Africa, as elsewhere, religion has played a role in triggering and sustaining conflict. There are
many instances where cultist religion has been employed to promote an ethnic or political
agenda. In the majority of such civil wars, political emancipation and spiritual redemption have
operated hand in hand, with religious symbols and ritual practices manipulated, often mingled
with extraordinary myths and creative practices, to recruit spiritually induced foot soldiers ready
to wage a cosmic war for political ends. Despite this, cultist religion is often peripheral in
analysing conflict as well as peacemaking. Drawing its methodological perspectives from constructivism
and instrumentalism, this article contextually examines how religion and cults have
affected the Ugandan civil wars waged under the banners of the Holy Spirit Movement and the
Lord’s Resistance Army. It presents a generic conceptual framework for the socio-religious and
political triggers of the wars, assesses how religion played an instrumental role in sustaining
them, and makes suggestions for averting similar future conflicts while ensuring reintegration,
recovery, and the execution of justice.
Description
item.page.type
Journal Article (peer-reviewed)
item.page.format
Text
Keywords
UGANDA, CIVIL WAR, LORD’S RESISTANCE ARMY, HOLY SPIRIT MOVEMENT, RELIGIOUS CONFLICTS, CULTS, ETHNIC CONFLICTS, REINTEGRATION, POST-CONFLICT RECONSTRUCTION
Citation
Tesemma, S.T. (2013). The Role of Cultist Religion in the Ugandan Civil Wars. Africa Peace and Conflict Journal, 6(2): 60-74.