The International Criminal Court (ICC) has confirmed that 52 million euros ($57 million) will be paid to thousands of victims of Dominic Ongwen, a former commander in the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a notorious rebel group once led by the still-wanted Joseph Kony.
This confirmation came on Monday, April 7, 2025, after the ICC Appeals Chamber rejected Ongwen’s appeal and agreed with the earlier decision made by the Trial Chamber on the compensations as lawful and appropriate.
The court stated that the funds would assist nearly 50,000 victims in recovering from the suffering inflicted by Ongwen’s crimes.
While delivering the Appeals Chamber’s ruling in an open court session, Judge Solomy Balungi Bossa, who presided over the appeal, said,
“The Chamber finds no error in the Trial Chamber’s approach and confirms that the reparations awarded are lawful and appropriate in view of the harm suffered.”
The funds, totaling €52.4 million, aim to address the profound suffering inflicted by Ongwen’s actions, offering both individual and community-based support.
”Each eligible victim will receive a symbolic payment of €750 (approximately UGX 3.2 million), alongside broader initiatives aimed at promoting healing, rehabilitation, and other community-focused symbolic measures,” Judge Bossa added.
Ongwen, who is currently serving a 25-year sentence in Norway after being transferred there in December 2023, was convicted in 2021 of 61 crimes, including crimes against humanity and war crimes such as murder, rape, and sexual slavery. These offenses were committed in Northern Uganda between July 1, 2002, and December 31, 2005.
Ongwen’s lawyers had contested the reparations order, arguing that the names of the victims should have been disclosed to the defense and that the traditional justice systems of the Acholi people should be taken into account during the process.
However, the Appeals Chamber dismissed these arguments, saying that keeping victims’ identities hidden was necessary for their safety and that customary practices could not override Ongwen’s accountability under international law.
The judges also noted that any compensation victims may have received in Ugandan courts is separate and does not affect the reparations ordered by the ICC.
The decision was reached by a panel of five judges: Solomy Balungi Bossa (presiding judge), Tomoko Akane, Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza, Gocha Lordkipanidze, and Erdenebalsuren Damdin.
As one of the highest-ranking LRA figures prosecuted by the ICC, Ongwen’s case marks a significant milestone in delivering justice for the victims of the rebel group’s decades-long campaign of terror in northern Uganda.
