Dominic Ongwen, a former child soldier and former senior commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda, goes on trial this month at the International Criminal Court (ICC). He is charged with 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, which he allegedly committed against civilian populations in camps for internally displaced persons in Northern Uganda. Ongwen—conscripted at age 14 according to court documents—is the first person facing trial at the ICC for crimes of which he was also a victim: forced conscription and enlisting of children under 15 into armed forces.
The trial before the ICC will aim to determine whether he is guilty or innocent. But the reality of Ongwen’s actions and the context in which they occurred—including the trauma that he himself endured—is much more complex than guilt versus innocence, as it is for so many other children conscripted illegally. That is the reality we must also engage, and the public debate regarding his dual identity as both victim and perpetrator will continue long after his trial has concluded. For those of us supporting justice globally, there is a need to broaden the discussion beyond simple dichotomies if we want to help bring a sense of justice to the many victims of the conflict in Northern Uganda.
There is a temptation to simplify the child soldier phenomenon by declaring children associated with armed groups as innocent victims under international law. Typically, they are provided with reintegration assistance focused primarily on their individual needs and then sent back to their communities. However, what we have in seen in places like Northern Uganda, Colombia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, among others, is that regardless of how the law typifies these former child soldiers, many communities see them as perpetrators responsible for violations that are sometimes grave crimes.
