Witch doctors among witnesses defending Dominic Ongwen at ICC

Witch doctors are among the 62 witnesses that have either testified or yet to defend former Lord’s Resistance Army commander Dominic Ongwen at the International Criminal Court in Hague.

Ongwen is facing over 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between July 2002 and July 2005.

Speaking during a press briefing in Kampala, Maria Mabinty Kamara, the ICC outreach officer for Uganda said Ongwen has lined up 62 witnesses as his defence hearing continues, noting that these range from witch doctors, local leaders and former abductees among others.

“So far 25 witnesses have testified whereas many others are yet to do so. These include former Local Defence Unit personnel, former LRA abductees and witch doctors among others,” Kamara said.

“He is using witch doctors to emphasize there was an issue of spirituality that influenced the conduct of Ongwen.”

Witness protection

According to the ICC outreach officer for Uganda, there is a witness protection mechanism in place to ensure the witnesses are not discriminated as well as catering for their safety.

“Some witnesses have their faces and voices distorted whereas some sessions are conducted in private with the public closed out of court,” she said.

Kamara explained that other witnesses testify using video conferencing adding that there is a provision of relocating a witness from one area or country to another in case their safety is compromised after testifying in the Ongwen case.

“If someone says they are threatened due to their association with the ICC, they can be relocated but we first assess to find out the magnitude of the threat and see the kind of assistance to be given.”

“Relocation comes as a last resort but not at all times,” Kamara told journalists.

The Ugandan government in 2005 referred five top LRA leaders including Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti, Raska Lukwiya, Dominic Ongwen and Odhiambo Okot to the ICC for war crimes and crimes against humanity in northern Uganda.

However, of these, only Ongwen and Kony are still alive with the rest believed to have been killed,

For Ongwen is accused of commanding LRA rebels who attacked four camps for displaced people in Pajule in Pader District, Abok, Lukodi, Odek in Gulu and Oyam districts killing, raping and looting among other crimes committed by the insurgents.