Democratic+Republic+of+Congo

flat =**The Democratic Republic of the Congo**=

=Geography:= total area: 2,344,858 sq km land: 2,267,048 sq km  water: 77,810 sq km  37 km of coastline is the only connection to the ocean. Most of the DRC has a hot humid environment near the river basin, a cooler and drier southern highlands, and a cooler and wetter eastern highland. The northeastern section of the country is volcanically active. The Congo River is the only way to transport and communicate in the DRC. It is the second largest river in the world. (The Amazon being the largest.) The Congo River has cut deep canyons throughout the DRC and it is not entirely navigable. A few sections of the river have giant waterfalls surrounded by cliffs that touch the sky. For this reason the interior of the DRC was not explored until the late nineteenth century. Henry Morton Stanley explored the Congo River, reaching the mouth of it on August the 9th, 1877. The country is politically split up into 11 provinces, with Kinshasa being its own province. The government wants the nation split into 26 provinces wach with its own capital, but as of now that plan has yet to be put into action.

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=History:= The area of the Congo has been populated for thousands of years and before the arrival of the Portuguese a strong central government had been in place. The Portuguese arrived in 1482 and ran into the Kingdom of the Kongo. The Kingdom of the Kongo was well-developed and a force to be reckoned with. The Portuguese began trading for slaves and then just kidnapping them as time progressed. After the last great Kongo king, King Affonso, died the Kindgom of the Kongo slowly fell apart and the Europeans were able to continue their colonization of the mouth of the Congo River. The interior of the Congo was not discovered until 1877. The Belgian King Leopold II was given the Congo after the Europeans finished dividing Africa amongst themselves. He took the Congo as his own personal estate and began plundering the country. He set up the force publique and began demanding the Congo's resources so that he could become rich and give Belgium prestige. After the invention of bicylces and automobiles a high demand for rubber began. Conoglese villages were given rubber quotas that needed to be filled under penalty of the lost of a hand or limb. The Belgians mistreated the Congolese on an almost genocidal scale with half of the population being wiped out from 1885-1910. The DRC was granted independence in 1960 and after the first freely elected Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, there was hope that the future was bright for the DRC. Lumumba was assassinated with help from the Belgians and the CIA because of his leftist leanings. Mobutu then became the dictator of the DRC, changing the country's name to Zaire. He ruled the counrty until he was deposed in 1997. Corruption became prevelant and the economy ground to a halt. Joseph Kabila is the current president of the DRC and he hopes to bring his country prosperity, but that will be difficult because of the corruption and the continuation of the civil war.



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=Demographics:= The United Nations estimated the 2007 population of the country to be 62.6 million, an increase of more than 25 million in ten years since 1997. There are 250 different ethnic groups in the country speaking seven hundred dialects and local languages. Due to the unstable political climate it is difficult to obtain accurate data, however, the Congo has maintained a steady stream of immigration from refugees and asylum seekers.

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=Economy:= Mineral resources of the DRC include coltan, oil, gold, ivory, and rubber. Coltan is the most important resource because it is used to make cell phones, DVD players, video gaming sytems, and computers. The argiculture projects include: coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits, and wood products. When the DRC became independent in 1960 it was the second most industrialized nation in Africa, behind South Africa, had a productive argiculture, and a strong mining sector. The GDP of the DRC has collapsed in the last 30 years and has failed to pick up.

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=Language:=

Although French is still the official language of the DRC, Lingala, Kikongo, Swahili and Tshiluba are recognized as national languages. All four national languages are Bantu languages; the Bantu languages are a branch of the Niger-Congo languages. There are around 250 Bantu languages, though due to the unclear distinction between language and dialect, some sources list as many as 535 different languages. Swahili is the most commonly spoken of these, with over 80 million speakers in over 8 countries. About 10% of the population of the DRC is fully French speaking, while another 30% are partially French speaking. Lingala was pushed by colonists who attempted to teach a uniform local language. It became the major language in Kinshasa and was also the official language used by Mobutu's army. Lingala was abandoned in the Eastern parts of the country during the transitional period, but is once again the official military language.

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=International Relations:=

While the Democratic Republic of the Congo has maintained a good political relationship with France, the country’s history with France’s northern neighbor, Belgium, is much more complex. King Leopold II of Belgium sponsored the initial exploration of the country, and took the land as his own private colony after the Conference of Berlin in 1885. He named this colony the “Congo Free State.” The colony provided resources and riches to Belgium through the king’s personal contributions to the economy. King Leopold II maintained his control through the Force Publique, an army of Congolese natives overseen by a select group of European colonists. In 1908, the Belgian parliament assumed control of the colony, and kept control until 1960. A period of crisis followed Congolese independence from Belgium in 1960. Patrice Lumumba was elected as the first Prime Minister, but the period of turmoil did not end until Joseph Mobutu seized power after Lumumba’s assassination. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been ruled independently since 1960, and is now only connected to France, Belgium and other countries through trade networks.

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=Religion:=

Christianity is the most prevalent religion in the DRC. Almost 90% of the population practices some form of Christianity, with 55% identifying as Roman Catholic and 35% identifying as Protestant. One notable subset of the Protestant sector is Kimbanguism, a branch founded in the Belgian Congo by Simon Kimbangu which has upwards of three million followers. About 5% of the population is composed of practicing Muslims, while just under half that practices Animism (an indigenous religion). Atheism and Agnosticism are severely underrepresented in the DRC when compared to the rest of the world. It is far more typical for Congolese to identify with more than one religion, and some degree of overlap is very common.

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=Music:= Congolese music during the 1970's and 1980's usually included at least three, sometimes up to five, guitars. Lingala was the language that singers sung. Lingala is a hybrid language that the Belgians created while they were ordering multiple ethnic groups to work on the railroad. The arrival of rock-and-roll sent shockwaves through Congolese music. Conoglese bands began to look for ways to increase the tempo of the rumba. The bands that changed their countries music sang about freedom of expression and other ideas that were taboo under the dictatoral rule of Mubutu. Even though they sang about these things, as long as they stayed out of politics Mubutu wouldn't bother them. Most of them stayed away from the political scene so he left them alone. After the coup that deposed Mubutu most of the Congolese musicains fled to East Africa and South Africa. It will take years for Kinshasa to regain the lively music that was once a huge part of the city life.

Sources: [] [|Zaiko Langa Langa] [|Zuwa Ya Likukuma]

=Book Reviews:= Reggie //The Anatomy of Resource Wars// discusses resource wars that are happening in several countries throughout the world, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The first resource war occurred during the war that overthrew Mobutu in 1997. While Laurent Kabila and his rebel forces became stronger foreign investors started signing contracts with him before he was the ruler of the country. As soon as Mobutu was removed from power another, wider, resource war occurred. This resource war has been going on since 1998 and has cost millions of lives in the process. The war began in August of 1998 when Rwanda and Uganda invaded the Democratic Republic of the Congo to try and overthrow Kabila. Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Chad sent in forces to help Kabila. The invading forces immediately plundered the stockpiles of raw materials and then began to mine the resources. The mining was either done personally by armies or local Congolese were enslaved and mined the resources. The plundered resources are taken back to either Uganda or Rwanda were they are sold on the world market. Renner states, "in 2001 [Uganda] exported 10 times more gold ore than it did five years earlier." The Democratic Republic of the Congo almost lost the war in the first month but it used its mineral wealth to keep their allies (Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Chad) involved in the war. The allies fund their intervention in the Congo by selling the Congo's resources.

Renner, Micheal. //The Anatomy of Resource Wars//. Danvers, MA: The Worldwidewatch Institute, 2002. Print

Reggie The collapse of the Congolese state can be attributed to sky high inflation, corrupt government officials, and the influx of refugees from Rwanda. Zaire was a stable and corrupt state because the US supported it during the Cold War. Once the Cold War ended the US stopped supporting Zaire and the state slowly began to collapse. Mobutu allowed Zaire to have multi-party elections for the first time, but he bought off most of the opposition which led to less money for the public and hastened the collapse of Zaire. The next domino to fall was the army. The commanders would embezzle their troops' pay and compensate them by allowing them to loot whatever they wanted to. With Mobutu running out of money commanders began to have rivalries with each other, which lead to more unrest and chaos. After Mobutu was deposed Laurent Kabila became the president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This change in leaders did not help the country but only sent it further into the abyss. Kabila did not care about the unity of the state and he relied too heavily on Rwandan assistance. Both factors led to further fractioning of the country. Kabila was assassinated by one of his child soldiers and he was succeeded by his son Joseph Kabila. Joseph Kabila has been a far better ruler than his father. Joseph has started talks with rebels and allies of the rebellion. There are now political parties in the DRC. He has talked to leaders of the Western world, distanced himself from old-guard politicians and Angolian allies.

Lemarchand, Rene. //State Failures and State Weakness in a Time of Terror//. Ed. Robert I. Rotberg. Washington, D.C.: The World Peace Foundation, 2003. Print.

Simone //The Anatomy of Resource Wars// describes the effect natural resources have on wars all over Africa and the world. The wars that have plagued the Congo since the mid 1990s are centered on control of natural resources. Different groups of Congolese fight for power while the area is simultaneously invaded by neighboring countries. Congolese resources include diamonds, gold, copper, cobalt, tin, lead, zinc and niobium/coltan. Rwanda and Uganda became major exporters of raw goods from the Congo. The process is called resource pillage.

Renner, Michael. //The Anatomy of Resource Wars//. Worldwatch Paper 162, 2002. Print

Simone

=Analyses of the film //Lumumba// (directed by Raoul Peck)=

Simone The events surrounding independence of the Democratic Republic of the Congo were complex and hidden from the world’s view. The assassination of a democratically elected prime minister (Patrice Lumumba) by the secret service of a major world power (the United States) is one of the most shocking political cover-ups in history. In “Lumumba” by Raoul Peck, the director uses narration, music and documentary-style filmmaking to make the injustice personal for the viewer. The film is a call to action for the audience to remember the events that surrounded the assassination of Lumumba and keep the real story alive for the next generations. The film “Lumumba” is set in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as certain cities in Europe during the period of independence of the Congo (1959-1962). During this period, many African countries transitioned from colonial to independent rule. This was also during the Cold War, when most first world countries were petrified of the influence of communism. In order to ensure that developed powers could continue to pillage Congolese resources and the country would not align with the communist powers, the United States secret service struck a deal with Joseph Mobutu in a period of civil unrest. The U.S. backed assassination of Patrice Lumumba resulted in the 32 year authoritarian rule of Joseph Mobutu. The title of the film is “Lumumba”, a strong and succinct reminder of the lasting impression of the Congo’s first prime minister. It is significant because the film chronicles Patrice Lumumba’s last years on Earth and his influence on the Congo while urging the audience to honor his memory by searching for the truth. The film was made by Raoul Peck who is Haitian by birth, but was raised in the Congo as well as Europe. His perspective on the issue allows him to tell the story through the eyes of a native while simultaneously projecting it to the masses in the developed world. His background in journalism and documentary filmmaking give the film a suggestive realism and the story an authenticity that is deeply moving. Main themes of the film are political corruption and the abuse of an entire country. The film alternates between flashbacks and scenes from the aftermath of Lumumba’s assassination, while narrated by Lumumba, as if he had come back from the grave. The major scenes that deal with diplomacy and international relations show the unseemly motives and agendas that are pushed behind closed doors while a new government attempts to do what is right for the people. The film shows how fleeting power can be, and that in many places the people don’t have the power that they should. Ultimately the democratically elected prime minister did not have the power to stand up for his people; he was shoved out of the way by big businesses and international powers. There is also an element of race in this issue, in one scene that takes place in a European convention, white Europeans discuss an issue behind closed doors while new African powers are given the illusion that they are negotiating with each other and working toward helping their countries. In another scene, Mobutu is approached by American delegates, who offer him everything in exchange for his allegiance after the planned assassination of Lumumba. The political corruption urges the viewer to look beyond the stories presented by the media to the underlying currents of political tension and economic drive. The people of the Congo had been abused and kept in submissive positions throughout Belgian colonialism. While the new government attempted to change that, change does not happen overnight, nor do single men have the ability to overthrow decades of racism and oppression. In the transitional period of Lumumba’s rule, officers in the army were still often white Europeans, and white colonists still maintained lives of luxury, serviced by native Congolese who were seen as beneath them. This juxtaposition of classes outraged Congolese who fought for their independence, and led to violent riots. The abuse of people was ultimately also based on the abuse of the land and its resources. Lumumba was determined to put control of the resources back in the hands of the people, but he was powerless against the pressures of international and economic powers. The Congo had been beaten, raped and pillaged of its resources, and the frustrated riots mimic the desire of a people to inflict that same pain on its oppressors. The tone of the film is very serious, and simultaneously objective and personal. Peck achieves this by adding Lumumba’s emotional commentary to a very objective series of shots. The film is almost entirely well lit, which adds realism and life to very dark subject matter. The film also has very little action, with the exception of the riot scenes and the scenes in which Lumumba is imprisoned. By separating the action from the diplomatic relations, the director makes the audience see and feel the efforts to cover up and replace reality with a more palatable and media friendly version of events. Since the film begins with the dismantling of the bodies, it is clear that there will not be a positive outcome. All hope is gone from the start, letting the film unfold under a cloud of false promises. Through lighting, parallel structure and flashback, the director allows the audience to be overcome with the severity and intense sadness of one man’s life that largely affected the evolution of international affairs. After Lumumba is officially elected Prime Minister, he is sent to Belgium to conference with many other new African heads of state and individuals directly involved with the new, independent Congo. In this scene, the men interact in their three-piece suits and glasses, perched on antique European furniture, discussing diplomacy. The scene contrasts with the previous scenes which chronicled Lumumba’s rise to power, as an outspoken beer salesman who took over the dusty outdoor cafes of the Congo. While we feel that they are working towards a brighter future, there seems to be a level of hypocrisy, especially when shots of the group are interspersed with shots of Europeans who are discussing their own agendas behind closed doors. The mood shifts, however, when Patrice Lumumba brings up a song about the Congo’s independence. The group of men bursts into song, raising glasses to the independence of the nation. The song is distinctly African, and also very upbeat. It is here that the audience sees the culture of the country shine through the suits and glasses. The men are united by a common goal and a common desire. The scene ends optimistically, despite the overhanging fog of what is yet to come. The scene in which Lumumba is assassinated, along with some of his compatriots, is one of the darkest scenes in the film. The men are tied against a tree one by one, and executed while a large group of militia and foreign ambassadors watch. The only light in the scene comes from the headlights of four cars, positioned in a semi-circle around the tree, putting a morbid spotlight on those who are being killed. The cars seem wildly out of place among the trees, which symbolizes how unnecessary, and unrequested foreign intervention was in the Congo. This also gives the impression that the foreigners have the control over what is seen and what is not seen. They are the only ones who bear witness to Lumumba’s assassination, and they have the ability to turn the lights off the minute it is over. Despite this, a black African is holding the gun; the native people are still being controlled, and forced to kill their own. By the time it is Lumumba’s turn to face the gun, the tree is covered in blood and bullet holes. The tree is a symbol for the country, a land soaked in blood that has been permanently scarred by unnatural forces. Lumumba stands up in front of the emotional backdrop and the camera focuses on him as he is killed. By showing the gruesome details of the assassination Raoul Peck is exposing the whole truth, and sparing the audience no detail. In the subsequent scene, the audience then identifies with the two young Congolese who refuse to cheer for Mobutu’s lies, the truth emanating from their somber eyes. The film “Lumumba” shows the events surrounding the election and assassination of Patrice Lumumba. Through time jumps, lighting and narration, the director creates just enough subjectivity while maintaining an overwhelming feeling of objectivity. The film discusses the inequalities and injustices that existed in that period, while implying that similar injustices exist today. The narration suggests that the true history of injustice must be told to Africans by Africans, not in the biased books of the Western world. In the years since this film was released, has the story been told? By whom, and to whom? What can and should be done to bring more awareness? What can we do to fix the problems left in Africa, specifically the Congo? Is there a way to prevent this type of event from occurring? How can we be aware of these events in the future?

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Reggie

The film //Lumumba// takes place in the Democratic Republic of the Congo before and during its independence. Patrice Lumumba was the first prime minister of the DRC and he was assassinated within a year of independence. He wanted a united Africa and a united Congo, but there were others in the government that disagreed with him. His good friend, Joseph Mobutu, was corrupted by the West and betrayed Lumumba. Lumumba’s assassination brought about the 32 year dictatorship of Mobutu and permanently fractured the Congo.

The title of the film, //Lumumba//, signifies who the movie is about. It was filmed in 2000 and directed by Raoul Peck. Raoul Peck is a Haitian born director of documentaries and feature films. He directed a documentary, //Lumumba: The Death of a Prophet//, in 1992 and he used that information in the film //Lumumba//. Though he was born in Haiti his family moved to the DRC after Papa Doc came to power in Haiti. He went to school in the DRC, America, and France. //Lumumba// is his most famous film.

The main theme of the film is conflict. There’s conflict between whites and blacks, between the Congolese, and between unity and selfishness. The conflict between the whites and blacks is shown throughout the film. At the Pan-European Conference the whites and blacks are in separate rooms. The whites were divided over how independence would affect the Congo and whether they should let the Congo become independent. They constantly said that they wouldn’t make the mistake that the French made in Algeria. The mistake the French made was allowing Algerians to be postal workers and other governmental jobs. The Belgians believed that this gave the Algerians too much power and allowed them to become independent. They prided themselves with the knowledge that they did not allow the Congolese to work in government positions. The Belgians did this because they didn’t want to let go of the Congo. They believed that the Congo would descend into chaos once they left. Other instances of white/black tensions happen in the //force publique// when the army stages a minor rebellion and takes white officers hostage, as well as when black soldiers set up check points and murder white civilians. Lumumba not only wanted a unified Congo, but also a unified Africa. This gets him into trouble with other powerful Congolese. Two province leaders do not agree with Lumumba’s idea of a unified Africa they just want to make money and gain power. Once the DRC gains its independence those two province leaders join forces to start a civil war in the Congo. The civil war is used as an excuse to arrest Lumumba, because the civil war shows that he has failed to unify the DRC. The West gives Mobutu a well-trained army to fight against the other factions vying for power in the DRC.

//Lumumba// has a sobering mood. The beginning and the end of the movie are the same scene. Both show a party that is being thrown by Mobutu after the murder of Lumumba. The audience knows that Lumumba will be murdered, but they don’t know what, if anything, he will accomplish with the little time he has. For his entire political career Lumumba fights against those around him. He is a doer and only listens to himself. Lumumba tells many of those around him that they can never do anything on their own and that there is someone behind them pulling the strings. The someone behind them is the West. His interests in something universal interfere with the selfish interests of everyone else. As the movie progresses the audience gets the feeling that he won’t be able to accomplish anything because no one in a position of power is concerned about a united DRC.

There are two prison scenes in the film. The first is after Lumumba is arrested for political activity. The cell he is housed in is simple but not small. Two white people walk in and inspect his living quarters to see if he’s hiding anything. When they find something he has hidden he is kicked and beaten by a rubber truncheon. After his beating he is told that he is going to Brussels for a Pan-European Conference. The second prison scene happens after he and two of his ministers have been arrested. His fellow Congolese put them in a tiny cell and beat them with rifle butts. A doctor checks the vitals of the prisoners. The doctor says that one of them will die very shortly if medical attention is not given immediately. The captors instantly start beating the prisoners with more ferocity. The brutality of the Congolese towards their own people surpasses the brutality of the white prison guards. This is interesting because we often think that occupiers treat the natives worse than the natives treat each other. Occupiers usually inflict physical pain on the natives because they have different skin color, but people of the same color inflict pain because of finer differences. The white guards do not believe that they are at war with what Lumumba stands for; they feel the winds of change. The Congolese captors see Lumumba as a symbol of what’s wrong with the Congo, because he is seen this way they are able to attack him mercilessly.

Ultimately it’s political corruption that brings Lumumba down. As a member of the audience we can only watch Lumumba do everything in his power to help the Congo, but get nowhere. The audience grows frustrated with those around Lumumba as the movie progresses because they realize that Lumumba wants real change and that he wants to help his people, but those around him only want to help themselves. This conflict between Lumumba wanting to be pure and help his people and the corrupt politicians around him cause his downfall. Why does Lumumba narrate while his dead body is being carried away? Why is the movie mostly sunny, but it’s about tragic things? Work Cited

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