Over the last year, there have been increasing reports of cannibalism in Uganda. Reports of cannibalism have been documented since at least 2011, when Dr. Heike Behrend, a professor at the University of Cologne, wrote a book on the practice, but the issue recieved a renewed focus after a particularly grisly incident in March.
Vocativ recently sent Brooklyn-based filmmaker Matthew Goldman to Uganda to check out the situation.
In Uganda, Goldman met Baboola, a self-professed cannibal, who told him about the situation in Uganda and why he eats human flesh.
Screenshot/YouTube
Screenshot/YouTube
Cannibalism has been on the rise in the country in recent years. A pregnant woman and her child were supposedly killed and eaten in Rakai, a district in central Uganda, in March. 14 people have been arrested in connection with the incident.
Screenshot/Youtube
Screenshot/Youtube
The reports of cannibalism have not gone over well. Ugandans have been keeping to a strict curfew at night to avoid supposed cannibals and, in recent months, people have been destroying the homes and businesses of those suspected of cannibalism.
Screenshot/YouTube
Screenshot/YouTube
Joseph Kony, the leader of the much-maligned Lord's Resistance Army, has been accused of cannibalism. There have been reports that he makes soldiers drink the blood of enemies.
Screenshot/Youtube
Screenshot/Youtube
Baboola told Goldman that he was introduced to cannibalism by a relative. The relative told Baboola that the meat was "good" and that he should eat it.
Screenshot/Youtube
Screenshot/Youtube
Baboola says that he only eats people that are already dead, as opposed to to killing people. He says that the best tasting meat are people that have just died.
Screenshot/YouTube
Screenshot/YouTube
Baboola has mostly given up the trade, though he "cheats" on special occasions.
Screenshot/YouTube
Screenshot/YouTube