Restoration of the 10 commandments

Movement For the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God

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The Leader

The Followers

Paul Kishaku got the movement going in the late 1980s and when he died Joseph Kibwetere took over the group. He was a member of the Catholic community in Uganda. He was a former politician. The group he was the leader of was condemned by the local Catholic bishp.

There were members in several small Ugandan towns. They were said to avoid sex and hardly ever speak. Most of the members were former Catholics. They were punished by leaders claiming the Virgin Mary had told them to do so. Punishments like being starved.

Dooms Day Cult

The Movement For the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God was a harmful cult in western Uganda that ended in mass suicide and murder.

+ info

Kanungu

1980s

5000

+780

Members

Deaths

Uganda

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More about Joseph

Group practices/beliefs

Joseph Kibwetere officially became the groups leader in 1991 after Kashaku's death. Both men had clamed to have visions of Jesus and Mary. It was an off branch of the Catholic church and was not recognized as pure Catholic. In the visions they claimed they were told that there is not much time left and they have to prepare the way for the Last Judgement. After the deaths in 2000 he was missing, the police never found his body. It was found later that he had been diagnosed as a manic depressive although abandoned his treatment.

Mostly lived in silence occationally using signs to communicate

Regular pilgramage to a steep and rocky hill to a rock that they believed depicted the Virgin Mary

Punished by leaders if you had sinned by starvation or tasks

Leaders would murder, torture and punish people because they claimed the Virgin Mary told them to do so.

Life rotated around prayer, although we also farmed. We did everything possible to avoid sin. Sometimes if you sinned, they would command you to recite the rosary 1,000 times. You had to do it, and also ask friends and family to help, until you had served your punishment.

Judith Ariho

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The End of the Group

The Murder/ Suicide

The group met in march and were locked inside a church which was set of fire.

the cult leaders were shown to have been engaged in murder and torture

The movement believed that the would would end on 1999 december 31. They believed that if they were to work diligently enough they could save the world from Gods wrath. When they world did not end the group went thorugh a phase then in march of 2000 there was a mass suicide and murders uncovered.

The cult leaders and now missing and no one knows where or how they died.

there were numerous compounds were bodies were dumped over several years that was tied back to the group.

Everything was covered in smoke, soot and stench of burnt flesh. It seemed to go right to your lungs. Everybody was running into the valley. The fire was still going. There were dozens of bodies, burnt beyone recognition. We covered our noses with aroatic leaves to ward off the smell. For several months afterwards, we could not eat meat."

Anna Kabeireho

Works Cited

• https://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/27/world/fateful-meeting-led-to-founding-of-cult-in-uganda.html
• https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/cults-dangerous-deadly-history/56/
• https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/movement-restoration-ten-commandments-god
• https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51821411
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/694729.stm