The Redemption of General Butt Naked

“General Butt Naked, is that his real name?” I think as I sit in the theatre waiting for the film to start. Sure enough, it is. The name is feared in Liberia, and during the civil war, only ten years or so ago, if you heard “General Butt Naked is coming!” you ran like hell. Butt Naked and his troop of young boys raped, looted and ruthlessly murdered every man, woman and child that go in their way.  How did he get the name? Simple, that’s exactly how he fought, butt naked.

Butt Naked, who now goes by his real name Joshua Blahyi, preaches to a congregation as sweat rolls down his face and massive arms.  He screams “Praise Jesus!” to a group inside a makeshift chapel.  He is in a refugee camp in Ghana, fleeing for his life after admitting guilt to “no less than 20,000” casualties during the war. But it isn't the government who is after him, it’s the other men put on trial for war crimes who aren’t ready to face up to their hellish deeds.  Joshua had just asked for forgiveness the day before from three of his victims who were in the refugee camp and now in the congregation: a woman, who’s husband he shot; her child, who he blinded in one eye with the butt of his gun; and a man, who’s entire family he killed.  They all forgave him, but the woman tells the camera that “it’s hard to forget.”  She says that she sees the same strength in him as he preaches that she saw in him that day he came into her village as Butt Naked.

I was shocked to hear how freely Butt Naked confessed to all his past deeds, and I often questioned the genuineness of his apologies.  The film will both anger and confuse you leaving you with a pile of mixed emotions that makes you throw up your hands and say “oh well.”  The filmmakers did such an impressive job that the film almost felt staged. It gave me a much better sense of how emotionally and mentally dysfunctional Africa has been left by its former mother countries.  The exploitation of Africa’s people and natural resources has left the continent in a state of civil unrest.  It’s like a child, that we have spoiled and abused at the same time, leaving the people just as lost as you will be at the end of this film.