Belgium–Democratic Republic of the Congo relations

Belgium – Congo DR relations

Belgium	Democratic Republic of the Congo

Belgium–Congo relations refers to relations between Belgium and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The relationship started with the exploration of the Congo river by Henry Morton Stanley.

History

Following Stanley's expedition to the Congo, King Leopold II initially ruled Congo as his personal property following the Berlin Conference.^[1][2] On 18 October 1908, the Belgian parliament voted to annex Congo;^[3] on 15 November 1908, Leopold formally relinquished personal control over the state to Belgium, forming the Congo Free State. During the Free State period, Congo was reputed to have been brutalised by a harsh economic policy that entailed rubber production quotas to be met by forced labour.^[2] Other crops were also farmed in the Congo.^[4]

Political ties

After fifty years of Congo's independence, a visit by the Belgian King Albert II was met with controversy as the king's brother, Baudouin, was said to have been connected to the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, and Lumumba's family sought to bring a case against 12 Belgians claiming Lumumba's torture and murder constituted war crimes.^[5]

Amidst other controversies, Congo's Minister of Communication, Lambert Mende Omalanga, described an "unacceptable attitude of the Belgian political class to consider the Congolese problems as internal affairs of their country," following such allegations as the "very bizarre case of a purely imaginary invitation of Belgian soldiers to participate in the military parade in Kinshasa," amongst others. He then said "coloniser to colonised relations is over." The Belgian Minister for Development Cooperation, Charles Michel, then expressed surprise at the remarks and demanded respect for Belgium.^[6]

During a visit by a Belgian cabinet delegation in 2008 to the Congo, President Joseph Kabila said he did not appreciate a message brought by the team in regards to human rights issues. Kabila said: "Belgium must make a choice on the type of relationship it wants to have with the Democratic Republic of Congo. It has a choice between having good relations as partners in a mature relationship with a sovereign and independent state or a master-slave relationship. I will note that every time a Belgian delegation is led by the minister of foreign affairs; it is with a lot of arrogance, as if our visitors are coming here to lecture us. This is unacceptable. The Congo will never accept this, definitely not me."^[7]

References

1. Hochschild.
2. Stengers, Jean, "Le rôle de la commission d'enquête de 1904-1905 au Congo", In Congo: Mythes et réalités, Bruxelles: Editions Racine, 2005, pp. 159-179.
3. Senelle, R. and E. Clément (2009), Léopold II et la Charte Coloniale, Brussels: Editions Mols.
4. Boahen, A. Adu (1990). Africa Under Colonial Domination, 1880–1935. p. 171.
5. Charges sought in Lumumba death 50 years after DRC independence | Radio Netherlands Worldwide
6. Congo/Belgium: The coloniser to colonised relationship is over
7. Tense relations between the DRC and Belgium | Congo Planet