On the 17th March 2000, 530 bodies, of which at least 78 were children, were found to have burned alive in a church in a remote part of Uganda; all part of a Christian apolcalyptic group. 330 skulls were found, the rest had turned to ash. Over 1,000 bodies were found elsewhere in Uganda during the following days, many of which were found to have been strangled. The doors and locks were fastened from the inside, suggesting this was the final intention of the group's leader, not necessarily an outsider murdering them.
However, during both when the movement existed and when it came to an end, there were problems with the outside world obtaining information about them. These included: the remoteness of the group's location in Kunungu, undocumented information on the movement, and their problematic relationships with their surrounding communities and local authorities. Following the death, there were inadequate forensic resources available to distinguish how exactly the members of the group died, but the greatest speculation is that of murder, rather than mass suicide.
The group lived in a secluded community, with speech only allowed for hymns and prayers. They built their own houses, sold all their possessions and had a commitment to martyrdom. One of the principle teachings of the group was that to survive the apocalypse, one had to enter Noah's Ark, and this entry to heaven was only possible after death; in the hope of restoring the garden of Eden. The group believed the world would end on 31/12/1999, and the "Day of the New World" would begin the following day. However, as the world did not end, one of the leaders, Credonia, said the Virgin Mary would appear between 6th and 18th March 2000. The leeaders taught that the importance of the 10 Commandments needed to be restored.
Although it is clear that many mass murders took place around various locations in Uganda in connection with the group, no-one knows how exactly what happened on 17th March 2000 in the church in Kugunga.
One website speculates over what might have happened to draw this NRM to an end:
<http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_rest.htm>
"Mass suicide:
- There is one initial report, never unconfirmed, that the members had applied gasoline and paraffin to their skin before the explosion and fire. However, it is difficult to see how the observer could have witnessed these preparations if the windows and doors of the church were nailed shut. If confirmed, this would be one indicator that the deaths might have been the result of a mass suicide, similar to that of Heaven's Gate.
- The police investigation cast doubt on this sole witness; they found no signs of paraffin having been used at the church. Most of the world media initially emphasized the suicide theory. So did representatives of the anti-cult movement who are keen to promote their belief that mass suicide is a logical outcome of cult activity. They accuse cults of brainwashing their membership and reducing their will to act independently.
- Although their fundamental beliefs have been widely discounted by mental health professionals, the ACM has been quite successful in propagating their beliefs among the press and the rest of the public.
Mass murder: There is a growing indication that the tragedy was a mass murder, not a mass suicide:
- Several news sources reported that the doors of the church were nailed shut from the inside. That might indicate that the leadership wanted to confine the full membership within the church in order to murder the entire group.
- The discovery of additional bodies which had been murdered and buried in latrines near the church gives weight to the mass murder theory.
- The discoveries of many hundreds of murder victims at other locations also point towards mass murder.
- Leader Kibwetere appears to have planned the tragedy in advance. He allegedly sent a letter to his wife before the tragedy, encouraging her to continue the religion "because the members of the cult were going to perish the next day.''
- The group's membership are almost entirely ex-Roman Catholic -- a faith that strongly forbids suicide. Traditional belief also very strongly forbids suicide. Finally, local belief is that if a person dies in a fire, that not only their body is killed but their soul is as well. This is the reason why evil sorcerers were once burned alive: so that they would be completely annihilated. It is very unlikely that if a person in this area wanted to commit suicide that they would choose death by fire."
Claire Lloyd.
0622669.
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