Michelle Farley
Colonialism
The DRC is made up of over 900,000 square miles with regions divided by natural barriers—and only a 20-mile coastline at the mouth of the Congo River that allowed European traders access to the immense hinterland. Belgian colonization was characterized by the direct control of a highly centralized administration with only white Belgians in the superior positions of power. An extensive infrastructure was built that led out of the country, as white traders were purely interested in exporting Congo’s numerous natural resources. Concessions for plantations and mines were awarded to foreign companies who used the Congolese for slave labor, and thus the trend of using violence and terror to subdue the population and extract its wealth began early on.
Independence and Lumumba
After World War II, as other African countries began to assert their desires for independence, similar movements began to develop in the Congo. Though the Belgians tried to ignore this situation, they eventually had to recognize the prominence of the Congolese National Movement (MNC), headed by Patrice Lumumba, and initiate independence talks after riots killed a number of people in several Congolese cities. Elections were held in May of 1960, in which Lumumba was elected prime minister under Kasavubu’s presidency, and Joseph Desiré Mobutu became colonel and chief of staff. Lumumba was highly suspicious of the West, and spoke out against the oppressive legacy of colonialism. He wanted to nationalize the country’s industry so that the wealth would benefit the Congolese people, which naturally upset the foreign countries who then controlled the resources. Consequently, Lumumba was labeled a Marxist by Western powers. Joseph Desiré Mobutu became colonel and chief of staff.
Independence was granted on 30 June, but not even two weeks later, on 11 July, Katanga, the most mineral rich province in the Congo, announced its independence with the support and influence of European interests. The UN sent a peacekeeping force, but refused to place it under the control of the central government. Angered by this, Lumumba requested and received Soviet aid. Given that Lumumba was already considered a Marxist, the West perceived Soviet intervention as a strategic open door through which to gain influence in all of Africa. (Neighboring Angola was already a Soviet-supported state.) Thus, on 5 September, Kasavubu dismissed Lumumba from his position as prime minister, and Mobutu expelled all Soviet and communist-bloc diplomats and technicians from the Congo. Lumumba was later arrested and died under mysterious circumstances several months later.
The Mobutu Years
After continued political turmoil, Mobutu assumed the presidency on 25 November 1965 in a coup d’état, claiming that the politicians had failed and the military was stepping in to restore order until elections could be held in five years. Mobutu then initiated a new constitution that gave him almost absolute power: only one political party was legally permitted, which Mobutu was the head of, the president had direct control of the army, and citizens could not openly criticize the government. Soon after, Mobutu also eliminated the position of prime minister, further consolidating his power. On 27 October 1975, the country was renamed Zaire, and Mobutu encouraged people to do away with Western practices and influences (including religion) in favor of a return to their African “roots” and “traditions.”
Throughout these years, Mobutu essentially appropriated and privatized the state and its economy. The multiple centers of accumulation, and portable quality of the resources, and the deteriorating infrastructure allowed Mobutu to control the wealth more easily; he manipulated market networks and opportunities to help his associates and thereby gain their loyalty and dependence. For example, the “Zairianization” project of the 1970s forced foreign companies to sell their businesses to Congolese entrepreneurs—i.e. Mobutu’s cohorts. However, as these associates were politicians and lacked the necessary skills of businessmen, the project failed miserably. Mobutu asked the original foreign owners to return, often without much luck, and the companies worked with local strongmen on Mobutu’s encouragement to use acts of violence to subdue the population. With foreign companies controlling the mines again, there was no need for an expensive state bureaucracy. At one point, 50% of the national budget was allocated to Mobutu to use at his discretion, and thus hardly any money went to state services.
Perhaps inspired by European monarchs (King Louis XIV comes to mind), Mobutu had an extensive intelligence networked that kept tabs on his associates. People were often forced to attend the pro-Mobutu rallies that Westerners interpreted as enthusiastic popular support for the enigmatic dictator. Rebellious tendencies in the population were also kept at bay through the frequent use of violence and Mobutu’s support by the international community, who came to his assistance during several violent uprisings. Furthermore, given the state of the economy, people had to spend most of their time simply trying to survive.
The End of Mobutu
After the end of the Cold War, as the West put more pressure on Mobutu to liberalize the country’s politics and economy, some of this began to change. In 1992, the Congolese Sovereign National Conference convened and approved a new constitution that stripped Mobutu of his powers—the international community, however, ignored these progressive democratic efforts, as did Mobutu. Finally, on 29 May 2997, the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Zaire-Congo entered Kinshasa after fighting its way across the country, and Laurent Kabila was sworn in as president. The name of the country was quickly changed back to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Kabilas and the War
Shortly after Kabila's ascent to power, Rwanda Burundi, and Uganda invaded the eastern part of the country citing security concerns, fightly alongside the Congolese Rally for Democracy. After the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, much of the responible perpetrators were regrouping and planning to re-enter Rwanda and renew the genocide. Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia joined the war on Kabila's side. There have been many attempts to hold productive peace talks, but different political stand-points as well, as some suspect, the profits gained by occupying resource-rich regions often hinder progress.
In January of 2001, Laurent Kabila was assassinated by one of his body guards, and his son Joseph was assumed the presidency.