Over a period from 1960-1965, the first Republic of the Congo experienced a period of serious crisis. There was a terrible war for power that displayed senseless violence and the desperation to rule. There were many internal conflicts among the people. The country eventually gained independence from Belgium. For many countries this would be a time for celebration. Unfortunately for the people of the Congo this became a time to forget. Almost immediately after independence and the general elections, the country went into civil war. Major developed cities like Katanga and Kasai wanted to be independent from the Lumumba government. Different factions started to fight the government and Katanga and Kasai tried to secede from the rest of the country out of fear of the mutinous army that was out of control looting and killing.
All out war ensued to the point where the international community had to intervene. The United Nations, Belgium, the United States of America and many other countries all became involved for different reasons. The outcome was the death of countless civilians, leaders like Lumumba and even the untimely death of the United Nations secretary general, Dag Hammarskjold in a plane crash en route to mediate the violence.
Military force led by the United Nations eventually muzzled the rebellion and with United States and Belgium’s help, Mobutu gained power. His leadership has been shown through history to be not much better.
In a period leading up to the eventual Independence from Belgium in 1960, several political parties were formed. The populous argued for independence from Belgium due to many decades of brutality and corruption under Belgian colonization. There were many protests and riots fighti...
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...from researching and writing about the events I felt I was transported to this time and place and I can really feel for the people of this country. Even when we read history books we are able to just take in the event as a historical time. It is easy to just read out numbers of slaughtered and oppressed like statistics but looking closer we must see that in the thousands who suffered and died there were brothers and sisters, moms and dads and little children. This unnecessary suffering was for greed and lust for power. This is a sad story that keeps repeating itself time and time again.
Works Cited
parenti,christian congo's crisis, congo's history. sept.2007 new york times 27 dec 2002
Congo:the heart of darkness. dec.1961 times magazine 22dec1961
mission for hammarskjold:Congo Crisis
Patrice Lumumba:Africa's Lost Leader
In 1991, a detrimental civil war began in the small country of Sierra Leone, with the RUF taking charge, trying to overthrow Joseph Momoh, the current (2nd) president, and the republic in which he operated. His people viewed him as manipulatable and weak, being controlled by his notoriously corrupt advisors. The RUF continued on strike, warring against the police and other governmental forces. In 1992 they managed to overthrow him. For six years, the war continued, as the RUF wanted their democracy to be put into motion. In 1997, a new president was designated, and the war declared over. This did not satisfy the RUF, and an uproar began, dragging the war on for another four years.
Thomas, Daniel H. The Guarantee of Belgian Independence and Neutrality in European Diplomacy, 1830’s-1930’s. Rhode Island: D.H. Thomas Publishing, 1983.
Millions were killed and lost everything, including money, family, and dignity. However, it has taught many lessons. We can study it today to make sure nothing like it ever happens again.
The RPF decided to create a government consisting of a Hutu and a Tutsi holding the highest government positions. As the RPF took control of the government, “some two million Hutus – both civilians and some of those involved in the genocide – then fled across the border into DR Congo… fearing revenge attacks”(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). However, the violence did not stop here. The RPF then became angry at the Democratic Republic of Congo, claiming that the Democratic Republic of Congo “letting[let] Hutu militias operate on its territory” (“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). As a result of the RPF’s claims about the Democratic Republic of Congo, they have invaded the Democratic Republic of Congo two times(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). The problems of the Rwandan Genocide has led to chaos in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has caused around 5 million deaths(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). In an attempt to punish those who were involved in the genocide, a large number of people have been sent to court. This genocide goes to show you how seemingly small problems between two groups can grow over time if not addressed, and cause major problems in the
Congo was an astounding bestseller novel. It was a great fictional novel that took place in the depths of the Congo rainforest. The novel was later made into a movie. Both the novel and the movie were good, however, I prefer the novel. It just seemed like a more entertaining piece than the movie. This movie was based much upon the novel, but had many alternatives and a completely different ending than the novel.
A beautiful precious diamond can last forever, but what most people do not know is that a majority of our diamonds come from Africa. The civil wars in Africa over diamonds began around 1961 and ended in 2003. Conflict diamonds were rampant and it would be difficult to say if any jewelry sold prior to 2003 was conflict free. Conflict diamonds are diamonds that have been mined and were controlled by African rebels. The rebels would use the profits from selling conflict diamonds to fund illegal activity and to purchase more weapons for their armies. While rebels had control of the diamond mines they killed approximately 4 million people and countless families were displaced.
The Congo Crisis was a war of cultures between the US and the USSR. Despite the Soviet Union having some support within the Congo, the US was able to prevail and instill capitalism by taking more direct action in the Crisis and by ensuring the new leader of Mobutu was friendly to American interests. The Congo Crisis negatively affected decolonization by serving as an example of the failings of an independent state ran by Africans, despite a majority of problems coming from foreign influence. As a battle of the Cold War, the Congo acted as foreshadowing to the US success over the USSR and as proof to the West that capitalism was the best and foreign ideas were inferior, negatively affecting their opinions of other states for years to come.
While Leopold II, the King of Belgium, desperately wanted an overseas colony, The Belgian people did not share his enthusiasm; which created the feelings of neglect and apathy Belgium had towards Congo. The Congo Free State, established “in the margins of the Berlin Conference” in 1885, allowed Leopold to “gain international recognition of his possession” which he had begun to take control of since the 1870s. However, while Leopold was securing control of the Congo, the Belgian people were not interested in controlling colonies, as they believed that colonies “would merely soak up resources that would be better used for social purposes at home.” Thus, the Belgian people decided to solve the problem of having an unwanted colony by separating the Belgian government from...
The Sierra Leone Civil War lasted eleven years and left Sierra Leone scared and unconstructed. The Revolutionary United Front (RUF) bombarded the country but faced constant resistance from the Sierra Leone Military. Both sides relied heavily on child soldiers throughout the war and a projected 5,000 to 10,000 child soldiers were collectively used by both the Sierra Leone government and the RUF. These children forcibly entered into a life of violence and oppression, and they have since struggled to reintegrate back into society. Child soldiers have returned home with no family or future and many still face severe complications.
The French arrived in Majority and helped the people in the revolt. The King and the Dutch army was defeated and King Leopold I took over as the French Ruler of Belgium. It was thus declared as an independent state. This independence too was followed by a lot of violence.
...line were ruined. Transportation costs are very high which seriously hampers small producers’ access to markets. At the height of the conflict, about one third of the country's people were displaced. The chronic financial crisis became severe and the economy was close to collapsing. Poverty became deeper in the rural areas of the Congo where poor people are now powerless, vulnerable and isolated. This is a big contributor to the poverty Congo is experiencing today because little has improved and won’t improve until these problems are fixed.
5 million. 5 million dead. for what? Some due to political instability, some due to the continued ethnic conflict between the Hutu and the Tutsi, and a multitude of others due to disease or starvation. This, The Second Congo War, is the deadliest conflict in the world since World War II. While I was only three months old at its outbreak and unable to retain a single memory of the events that took place while I was there, I do believe that the Second Congo War and the massive, seemingly insurmountable obstacle which it posed for me and my family, almost single-handedly changed the direction of my family's life as well as the attitude we have in everything we do. I was born on May 12, 1998, alongside my twin sister and following my older sister,
One can easily note the physical and sexual violence brought upon the people (black and white) of Congo after independence, but we must locate the other forms of violence in order to bring the entire story of Patrice Lumumba to light. The director’s attempt at bringing the story of Patrice Lumumba to the “silver screen” had political intentions.
This paper focuses on the nation and state building of Belgium between the Middle Ages and 1830, as Belgium did not exist at that time this paper examines the situation on the territories belonging to current Belgium. The process of nation-state building in Belgium is explained by defining the concepts of nation and state, then by analysing the system of powers in the Belgian territory and, finally by stating whether or not Belgium was a state or a nation during the analysed periods.
When the world starts falling apart politically and economically, chaos ensues. This is a common occurrence throughout history and it was true of the Angolan Civil War. As the civil war raged on into the early 2000’s the disillusionment of the citizens wasn’t too severe and the fighting was more organized and fierce than it was at the beginning; however, During the 1970’s the colony was in such upheaval that almost no one knew what was going or what to do about it. It was during this period of confusion and chaos that the Portuguese journalist Ryszard Kapuściński writes his short memoir Another Day of Life.