Independent Africa: The Congo

The Congo

Introduction

• The Democratic Republic of Congo is a large country in Central Africa, often referred to simply as the Congo.
• It was established as a colony during the Berlin Conference of 1894-1895.
• From 1971 to 1997, it was known as the Republic of Zaire.
• The Congo River forms part of its borders and runs through much of the country.
• The river was crucial to colonial European powers as it provided a 7,000-mile network of waterways into the African interior.
• In its lower reaches, the Congo River widens into a large lake called Stanley Pool by colonists, but known locally as Pool Malebo.
• The river is surrounded by the world’s second-largest rainforest.
• The Congo is rich in natural resources and has a history of copper-smithing.

Colonisation and Independence

Congo Under King Leopold II

• In the late 1800s, King Leopold II of Belgium colonized the Congo, making it his personal property.
• The Congo River's accessibility to the ivory and rubber-rich interior made the region highly desirable for colonization.
• After the Berlin Conference of 1894, the Congo became King Leopold II's personal colony.
• The Congolese people suffered extreme oppression under Leopold II’s rule, a period known as the ‘Congo of Horrors’.

Genocide in the Congo

• Leopold’s trade agents sought cheap labor to maximize profits from rubber plantations, as rubber collection was labor-intensive.
• Agents forced young men to work by holding their families captive until quotas were met.
• Resistance often resulted in immediate execution.
• People were beaten with whips called chicotte, made from dried hippo hide with sharp edges.
• Major revolts were ruthlessly suppressed, leading to extensive violence and repression.
• From 1895 to 1908, an estimated 8 to 10 million people died due to murder, mistreatment, and starvation.

Congo Under Belgian Colonial Rule

• European missionaries established schools and clinics in the Congo, opposing the abuse under King Leopold II.
• In 1908, due to exposure of Leopold's brutal methods, the Congo was brought under the control of the Belgian state and renamed the Belgian Congo, leading to improved governance.
• Belgian administrators maintained an arrogant and condescending attitude towards the indigenous population.
• By 1959, the Congo produced 10\% of the world’s copper, 50\% of the world’s cobalt, and 70\% of the world’s diamonds.
• This wealth was not invested in industrializing the Congo’s economy.
• Colonial powers were highly interested in the Congo’s natural resources.
• The USA sourced a substantial amount of its uranium from the Congo, including uranium used in the 1945 nuclear bombings of Japanese cities.

Independence Struggles

• In the 1950s, many pro-independence political parties emerged, some drawing support from specific ethnic groups or regions.

• The Alliance des Bakongo (ABAKO) was supported largely by the Bakongo people.

• The Fédération Kasaïenne drew support from the Kasai region.

• The Confédération des Associations Tribales du Katanga (CONAKAT) was supported by the Luba people.

• The Mouvement National Congolais (MNC) aimed to unite the country beyond ethnic and regional lines.

• In 1959, political riots occurred in Léopoldville and Stanleyville, with crowds demanding immediate independence.

• Patrice Lumumba, leader of the MNC, was arrested and imprisoned.

• Belgium realized continued oppression would be costly and that business with an independent Congo would be more efficient.

• In January 1960, Lumumba was released to attend the Brussels Conference, where the Congo’s future was discussed.

• Belgium agreed to grant independence to the Congo in June of that year.

Independence for the Congo

• In May 1960, Belgian administrators and Congolese political parties held democratic elections, which Lumumba’s MNC won, but without an outright majority.

• The MNC formed a coalition with ABAKO, making Lumumba Prime Minister and ABAKO leader Joseph Kasa-Vubu President.

• Lumumba and Kasa-Vubu had long-standing rivalries and different visions for the Congo.

• Lumumba advocated for a strong centralized government, while Kasa-Vubu preferred a federal system.

• Lumumba was a left-leaning Pan-Africanist, while Kasa-Vubu was more conservative and willing to collaborate with the Belgians.

• In June 1960, the country became independent, naming itself the Republic of Congo (also called Congo-Léopoldville or just Congo).

• The transition to independence was rushed, leaving the country without established governance structures.

• A neighboring former French colony also became independent that year and named itself the Republic of Congo.

• To avoid confusion, the ex-Belgian colony was called Léopoldville, and the ex-French colony was called Congo-Brazzaville, named after their respective capitals.

• Despite his reservations about Belgium, Lumumba retained white officers in the Congolese army for their experience but did not increase soldiers' pay.

• In July 1960, these decisions led to a mutiny, marking the beginning of the Congo Crisis, which lasted until 1965.

The Congo as a Tool of the Cold War

• Many Europeans fled the country during the turmoil, and the Belgian Army remained to oversee evacuation.

• The continued presence of the Belgian army angered Lumumba, who viewed it as an infringement on the Congo’s independence.

• The copper-rich province of Katanga, led by Moise Tshombe, declared independence and received military support from Belgium, who wanted to continue mining without central government intervention.

• The diamond-rich province of South Kasai, led by Albert Kalonji, declared itself an autonomous state within the Republic of the Congo and received financial support from a Belgian mining company.

• Kasa-Vubu and Tshombe viewed events through a regional ‘nationalism lens.’

• Lumumba viewed events through a ‘race lens’ and a ‘class lens’, opposing white imperialism and favoring a united Congolese front.

• Lumumba sent the Congolese army to Katanga and South Kasai to prevent secession.

• Congolese forces massacred civilians during the intervention, drawing criticism.

• Lumumba requested UN assistance to maintain the Congo as a unified country. The UN sent a peacekeeping force but was not prepared to use force to unify the Congo.

• Lumumba wanted the Congo to follow a path of ‘positive neutralism’, avoiding alignment with either the Western or Eastern Bloc.

• When the UN did not provide military support, Lumumba sought assistance from the USSR.

• The Soviets provided trucks, planes, and military advisors, helping the Congolese government regain control of South Kasai.

• Kasa-Vubu, angered by Lumumba’s Soviet intervention, dismissed Lumumba as Prime Minister, a decision Lumumba contested.

• The USA and Belgium were also upset that Lumumba had invited the Soviets to assist in the Congo.

• They funded Joseph Mobutu, the anti-communist chief-of-staff of the Congolese army, whom US diplomats saw as the leader they wanted in the Congo.

• This funding allowed Mobutu to pay his soldiers privately, increasing his power.

• Lumumba ordered Mobutu to arrest Kasa-Vubu, and Kasa-Vubu ordered Mobutu to arrest Lumumba.

• Mobutu sided with Kasa-Vubu and arrested Lumumba, ordering the Soviets to leave the Congo.

• Lumumba fled to Stanleyville, where his supporter, Antoine Gizenga, attempted to establish a separate government with Soviet support.

• In December 1960, Mobutu’s forces captured Lumumba. The USSR requested UN intervention, but the UN refused.

• Lumumba was tortured and sent to Katanga, where he was assassinated on January 17, 1961.

• US President Eisenhower ordered the CIA to ‘eliminate’ Lumumba, but before they could act, Tshombe’s forces, with Belgian involvement, carried out the assassination.

• Gizenga briefly continued to govern the Stanleyville area with Soviet support, with his government recognized by 21 countries.

• After U Thant replaced Dag Hammarskjöld as head of the UN, the UN became more actively involved in stopping secessionist attacks, aiding Mobutu in unifying the Congo.

• In 1964, the Simba Rebellion broke out with Soviet support but was suppressed with Western aid and mercenaries.

• Eventually, all parts of the country came under the control of the Congolese army.

Mobutu Takes Over

• In 1965, Mobutu overthrew Kasa-Vubu in a ‘bloodless coup’ with the aid of Western powers and took control of the Congo.

• A bloodless coup is a non-violent takeover of government.

• That year, he renamed the country the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

• Under Mobutu, the DRC became a one-party state, where only the Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution (MPR) was allowed.

• Mobutu became a total dictator, torturing and killing his opponents. He ruled the country for nearly 32 years.

• The Belgian colonial system was replaced by an African dictatorship after one year of democracy.

• French continued to be used in schools.

• The government attempted to encourage industry by keeping import duties on factory equipment low.

• The administration accepted bribes.

• The USA continued to support Mobutu because he was anti-communist, and during this period, the country received half of all the financial aid that the USA sent to Africa.

• Some believe this was to support US business investments in the DRC.

• In 2000, Alex Duval Smith described events in the Congo as ‘one of the most blatant examples of a former colony being prevented from managing its own independence.’

• In 1966, Mobutu nationalized the Belgian mining company, Union Miniere du Haut Katanga (UMHK), which temporarily improved the country’s finances.

• In 1967, the government introduced a new currency, the Zaire, to replace the Congolese franc. The word ‘zaire’ was based on the Congo River’s traditional name: nzadi o nzere. Initially, 1 zaire was valued higher than 1 US dollar.

• In 1967, the country also received 27 million US dollars as a loan from the IMF.

• Mobutu viewed Western financial support as payment for his support of the Western Bloc during the Cold War and didn’t consider these loans as requiring repayment.

Mobutu and Authenticaté

• In the 1970s, as part of his ‘Authenticaté’ campaign, Mobutu changed the name of the country to Zaire.

• The Congo River was renamed the Zaire River.

• The names of the main cities were “Africanised,” with Leopoldville becoming Kinshasa.

• People’s names were also Africanised by presidential decree, and Mobutu took the name Mobutu Sese Seko.

• At this time, the province of Katanga was also renamed the province of Shaba to discourage further efforts at secession.

• In 1973, Mobutu declared he was nationalizing many businesses in a process called ‘zairianisation’. This was to return assets to the Zairian people, but he confiscated them for himself and his MPR leaders without compensation to the owners.

• In 1973, there was a worldwide economic recession.

• The new owners of ‘zairianised’ businesses often lacked business experience, leading to a drop in production and sales.

• Unemployment increased, and there was a shortage of goods, especially food. The country’s infrastructure also declined.

• A drop in the copper price in 1974 worsened the country’s economic problems because copper was a major export.

• By the end of 1974, Mobutu decided to return a portion of each ‘zairianised’ business to those foreigners who were prepared to return to Zaire, a process called retrocession, but few foreigners returned.

• Gross mismanagement plagued the country during the second half of the 1970s.

• The Country struggled to get tax revenue, and there was a growing budget deficit.

• In 1977 and 1978, drought and famine struck western Zaire.

• Also in 1977 and 1978, Congolese rebels invaded the Shaba (Katanga) province from bases in Angola, in what came to be called the First Shaba War and Second Shaba War.

• The rebels had Soviet support.

• Zaire received weapons from Belgium, France, and China in the First Shaba War and military support from Belgium, France, and the USA in the Second Shaba War.

• Suppressing these uprisings put an increased strain on state finances.

• By the end of the 1970s, Western banks feared they would never be paid back and stopped loaning money to Zaire.

• Zaire tried to get loans from the IMF and the World Bank. In 1981, the IMF granted Zaire a loan of 1 billion dollars and tried to get Mobutu to reform the economy.

• Between 1979 and 1985, the World Bank loaned Zaire more than 650 million US dollars.

• The USA continued to support Mobutu and was a very influential ally. After Mobutu met with President Ronald Reagan in 1981, Reagan said, “Zaire is taking the difficult but necessary steps to ensure sustained economic progress, and it’s important that we and Zaire’s other friends do what we can to help.”

• The USA knew that Mobutu was a corrupt and oppressive dictator but continued to support him during the 1980s, fearing that the Congo might turn to communism if he were removed from power.

• Just as the USA had helped to put Mobutu in power in the 1960s, it did nothing to help remove him in the 1980s – also because of the Cold War tensions.

• During the 1980s, the IMF became impatient with Zaire’s lack of real reform.

• Zaire also became bankrupt.

• Mobutu’s personal fortune was estimated to be worth at least about 4 billion US dollars at this time.

• In an effort to make funds available, the government printed more money, causing inflation. As inflation increased, notes had to be printed in bigger denominations.

• In the 1980s, the value of the zaire decreased significantly against the US dollar, which reduced the buying power of people’s salaries and wages.

• As the buying power of the people’s salaries and wages decreased, people became desperate.

The End of the Cold War and Changing Dynamics in the Congo

• In 1991, the Cold War ended, and American aid to Mobutu dried up.
• In 1991, the IMF also declared that Zaire was very behind on its debt repayments and drastically reduced its loans.
• Mobutu agreed to hold multi-party elections to secure more foreign aid.
• These elections never took place – Mobutu stalled political reform through bribery of opponents, intimidation, or violence.
• In 1997, Mobutu was overthrown by Laurent Kabila, who was succeeded by his son, Joseph Kabila.
• In 2006, the country held its first-ever democratic elections, giving some legitimacy to Joseph Kabila’s leadership.

The Kind of State that Emerged

• By 1965, the Congo had become a one-party state. The only political party allowed was the Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution (MPR).
• The country became a corrupt dictatorship under Mobutu Seko Seko, who never allowed democratic elections to be held.
• He claimed to follow a capitalist path to attract foreign aid money because he depended on US support to remain in power.
• Mobutu was eventually overthrown by Laurent Kabila, who was succeeded by his son, Joseph Kabila.

Economic Successes and Challenges

Economic Successes

• Mining, oil, agriculture, and forestry continued to earn money for the Congo.
• Industry was encouraged through reduced import duties on factory equipment.
• Foreign firms provided employment.
• Foreign firms were well taxed, which earned some wealth for the country.
• Mobutu successfully sourced financial aid from the USA, the IMF, and private banks.

Economic Challenges

• During the first period of Mobutu’s dictatorship, foreign firms still owned the mines, so the profits from mining operations were sent overseas instead of flowing into the Congolese economy.
• Once the mines were placed under the control of locals, these mines were not well managed because of a lack of experience.
• Much of the wealth earned from mining went into the bank accounts of Mobutu and top-ranking officials rather than being reinvested in the growth of the mining operations.
• Foreign aid and loans were wasted in corruption.
• The country developed a large national debt.
• A lack of development in terms of infrastructure.
• Civil wars interrupted trade, industry, and agriculture.
• Over-dependence on mining making it vulnerable to a fall in commodity prices.
• The high unemployment rate.

Kleptocracy

• Kleptocracy is a form of government by individuals who primarily seek personal gain at the expense of those they govern and entails the systematic use of the government’s powers to enrich political leaders.

• Kleptocratic rulers are rarely concerned with good governance, and their neglect or violation of their official duties usually leads to economic and social dysfunction.

• Kleptocratic leaders use the resources they have stolen from their countries, as well as the institutions they have subverted to maintain their power.

• In the Congo, the production, consumption, and distribution of goods were badly managed. There is a general agreement that the Congo’s economy failed under Mobutu.

• Some historians blame a deeply entrenched colonial legacy of underdevelopment for this, while others blame the Cold War.

• It can be a combination of the two, and emphasize the government’s own poor choices post-independence.

• The fact that it has so many natural resources and the agricultural potential to feed the entire African continent makes this country’s inability to properly sustain even its own people a sign that it was significantly underachieving.

Political Successes and Challenges

Political Successes

• Under Mobutu, it was largely politically stable.
• The country managed to remain unified despite the attempts by a number of provinces to break away.
• Through aspects such as name changes, attempts were made to reflect the country’s African roots and to build a national identity.

Political Challenges

• Once the Belgian colonisers left, the locals who took charge had little experience of running a country.
• The country was huge, had a large population, and poor infrastructure.
• It contained many different ethnic groups with different allegiances and different languages. A sense of national unity was difficult to establish.
• While it was initially set up as a democratic state, there were not sufficient checks and balances in place to protect this democracy.
• Under Mobutu, the country was ruled as a one-party state and a dictatorship for 32 years.
• Mobutu created a regime of terror to crush all opposition, which meant there was no freedom of speech.
• Mobutu bribed officials to keep them loyal, and corruption became rife.
• The dependence on Western countries for financial aid and military support threatened the country’s ability to chart its own course.
• Western businesses in the Congo were also so powerful that they threatened the country’s sovereignty.
• The conflict in Rwanda spilled over to the Congo.
• The country experienced two civil wars.
• Human rights were not protected, and women’s rights continued to be badly neglected.
• While the country now holds democratic elections, there is still a lack of transparency.

Social Successes and Challenges

Social Successes

• Independence led to the end of a system of white supremacy.
• Kinshasa became one of the largest urban areas in Africa, with all the opportunities which it entailed.

Social Challenges

• Economic inequality was high and was exacerbated by corruption within government departments.
• The people of the Congo experienced extreme poverty, particularly in rural areas.
• Urban communities, while less affected by poverty, suffered from overcrowding, crime, a lack of sanitation, and clean water.
• The civil war in the eastern area of the country resulted in the death and displacement of large numbers of people.
• Limited agricultural activity resulted in malnutrition.
• People suffered from diseases such as HIV/Aids, cholera, malaria, sleeping sickness, and typhoid.
• Reports of sexual violence, assault, and mass rape skyrocketed, especially in times of military conflict. It has been reported that rape was systematically used as a weapon of war during the Congo civil war.
• Medical care and support from the courts was lacking with victims of rape.
• Certain ethnic groups were victims of hate speech and were forced to work as slaves.
• The literacy rates were low, which limited opportunities for the people.
• Gender inequality remains high.
• Homosexual people remain vulnerable to persecution, especially flowing the passing of homophobic legislation which makes it illegal to be gay.
• Even now, less than 20\% of children enter secondary school education.

Cultural Successes and Challenges

Cultural Successes

• The people experienced an improved cultural confidence with the end of colonial rule.
• A diverse array of cultures continued to exist.
• Kinshasa, in particular, was a cultural melting pot.
• In many instances, African traditions mixed with European influences in a constructive way. The dance music, Congolese rumba and soukus, were examples of this (although they also drew on Cuban music).
• The singer Le Grand Kallé became famous internationally, as did his song ‘Indépendence Cha Cha’.
• Pépé Kallé (aka ‘The Atomic Bomb’) followed in the footsteps of Le Grand Kallé and incorporated a faster, more European style into Congolese music.
• Kanda Bongo Man developed the rhythms that came to be referenced as kwassa kwassa, and he gave the guitar a more significant place in Congolese music.
• Under Mobutu, Congolese musicians were supported, and radio was used effectively to encourage local music.
• The indigenous language Lingala was the dominant language in the music industry and in business.
• The Christian faith amalgamated with African religious traditions, and key elements in both were found to echo each other.
• The Constitution of the DRC allowed for religious freedom, and these rights were generally respected by the government after the rise of Laurent Kabila.
• Clothing styles mixed local Congolese traditions with influences from Ghana and China.
• A call for ‘bas le costumes’ (meaning ‘down with the suit’ in French), limited the strong influence of European dress codes, even in the cities. The simple African suit, worn without a tie, became known as the ‘abacoast’.
• American films were popular, and the people of Kinshasa reminisce fondly over the cinema ear, which led to cowboy hats and cowboy boots also becoming fashionable.

Cultural Challenges

• There were 242 languages in the Congo, and the country could not afford to support the development of all of these.
• Only five languages became official languages: French, Lingala, Kikongo, Tshiluba, and Swahili.
• There is only one official language of government, which is French.
• There are problematic links between some faith leaders and paramilitary groups, while other charismatic preachers take financial advantage of their followers.