Covers the 30 June 1960 independence ceremony, the Congo Crisis (1960-1965, with a disputed death toll), the removal and killing of Patrice Lumumba in January 1961 (including the 2001-02 Belgian inquiry and apology), and UN admission on 20 September 1960. It does not cover the UN Operation in the Congo (ONUC) in detail or the country's later renaming and subsequent political history under Mobutu.
Belgium transferred sovereignty over the Belgian Congo at a ceremony in Léopoldville on 30 June 1960, with Joseph Kasa-Vubu as President and Patrice Lumumba as Prime Minister of the newly independent Republic of the Congo.[1] Within days, a Force Publique mutiny and the secessions of Katanga (11 July 1960, led by Moïse Tshombe) and South Kasai (9 August 1960, led by Albert Kalonji) plunged the new state into crisis, which is estimated to have caused roughly 100,000 deaths before ending with Joseph Mobutu's coup on 25 November 1965.[2] Lumumba was transferred to Katanga on 17 January 1961 and killed the same day; a Belgian parliamentary commission of inquiry found in 2001 that Belgian authorities bore "moral responsibility" for failing to prevent the killing, and Belgium's Foreign Minister apologised in February 2002.[3] The Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) was admitted to the United Nations on 20 September 1960, following a unanimous Security Council recommendation.[4][5]
Status verified as of
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been an independent, UN-member state since 1960. This bundle does not address the Congo Crisis or subsequent political history.[5]
History
From the 30 June 1960 transfer of sovereignty in Léopoldville to UN admission that September.
194 words · 1 min read
· Conflict episode
Within days of independence, a Force Publique mutiny and the secessions of Katanga and South Kasai plunged the new state into crisis; the Congo Crisis lasted until Joseph Mobutu's coup on 25 November 1965 and is estimated to have caused roughly 100,000 deaths.
Significance here: The political and military upheaval that followed directly from independence and shaped the country's subsequent history.
· Declaration
Belgium transferred sovereignty over the Belgian Congo at a ceremony in Léopoldville on 30 June 1960, with Joseph Kasa-Vubu as President and Patrice Lumumba as Prime Minister of the newly independent Republic of the Congo.
Significance here: The formal end of Belgian colonial rule and the establishment of Congolese independence.
· Recognition
The Security Council unanimously recommended the Republic of the Congo's admission to the United Nations on 7 July 1960, and the General Assembly admitted it on 20 September 1960.
Significance here: Formal international recognition of Congolese statehood shortly after independence.
· Conflict episode
Patrice Lumumba, the Congo's first Prime Minister, was transferred to Katanga on 17 January 1961 and killed the same day; a 2001 Belgian parliamentary commission of inquiry found that Belgian authorities bore "moral responsibility" for failing to prevent the killing, and Belgium's Foreign Minister apologised in February 2002.
Significance here: A pivotal and disputed episode in the Congo Crisis, later the subject of a formal Belgian inquiry and apology.
Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.
Claim: At a ceremony at the Palais de la Nation in Léopoldville on 30 June 1960, Belgium transferred sovereignty over the Belgian Congo, with Joseph Kasa-Vubu becoming President and Patrice Lumumba becoming Prime Minister. In his speech, Lumumba said: "Men and women of the Congo, victorious independence fighters, I salute you in the name of the Congolese Government," and that "independence was won in struggle, a persevering and inspired struggle carried on from day to day," which "was filled with tears, fire and blood. We are deeply proud of our struggle, because it was just and noble."
Claim: On 5 July 1960, days after independence, soldiers of the Force Publique mutinied against their remaining white officers. Belgium sent troops to the Congo, and on 11 July 1960 the mineral-rich province of Katanga, led by Moïse Tshombe, declared secession with Belgian backing; the province of South Kasai, led by Albert Kalonji, seceded on 9 August 1960. The resulting Congo Crisis, drawing in UN peacekeeping forces, is estimated to have caused roughly 100,000 deaths before it ended with General Joseph Mobutu's coup on 25 November 1965.
Claim: Patrice Lumumba was transferred to Katanga on 17 January 1961 and killed the same day. A Belgian parliamentary commission of inquiry, which concluded its work in November 2001, found that Belgian authorities bore "moral responsibility" for failing to prevent the killing despite knowing the danger Lumumba faced; Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel apologised to Lumumba's family and the Congolese public in February 2002.
Claim: On 7 July 1960, at its 872nd meeting, the Security Council, having examined the application of the Republic of the Congo (capital Léopoldville), unanimously recommended to the General Assembly that it be admitted to UN membership.
Claim: The General Assembly, at its 864th plenary meeting on 20 September 1960, having received the Security Council's recommendation and considered the application, decided to admit the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) to United Nations membership, alongside several other newly independent states admitted the same day.