Essay on Genocide in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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

For centuries, the Congolese people have lived in a war torn society that just does

Sub point 1: Cause 1: According to the journal article The DRC's Crumbling Legitimacy in 2012, written by foreign policy analyst Dizolele and lawyer Kambale, the 2011 presidential election in the DRC have led to a crisis of legitimacy. Over 100 people who were against current Congolese president Joseph Kabila, who has been suspected of fraud in his election result, were wounded in the capital

advocate for the Congolese people, not just human rights in general. In the book, we see that a

1909, over one hundred years ago, was the death of King Leopold of Belgium the sole owner of the Congo. Even years after he has left this earth and is no longer in the reign, the long-lasting effects he has had on the people and the land has forever changed the Congo. The memories left behind from the atrocities that occurred and the diminished resources due to extreme exploitation has prompted the author Adam Hochschild to write the novel, King Leopold’s Ghost. Using an Afrocentric point of view Hochschild describes how the events that took place under Leopold’s orders were acts of true terror and inhumanity.

creates a lack of understanding between the social groups in the Congo and their own

Between 1880 and 1920, the population of the Congo was slashed in half: some ten million people were victims of murder, starvation, exhaustion, exposure, disease, and a plummeting birth rate. Why do you think this massive carnage has remained virtually unknown in the United States and Europe?

Especially, tribes who are less powerful, including the Pygmies. Between October 2002 and January 2003, two rebel groups that go by the names of MLC and RCD-N, “created a systematic genocide against the local tribes and Pygmies nicknamed operation Effacer Le Tableau (Erase the Board)” (Sheshadri). Approximately 70,000 Pygmies were pronounced dead after these acts that occurred between both Rwanda, and the congo. But this was not the pygmies fault nor was it fair. Because Pygmies are only equipped with resources from the rainforest, they have no way of protecting themselves against these rebels who carry military weapons such as guns. Living in a forest where both men and women are not provided with such good health care, creates an unhealthy environment. According to a Mbuti representative who petitioned to the United Nations in 2003, “there are people who experience horrific abuse by armed militia in the congo, including high incidences of rape of women by the armed men” (survival International). Because of this, there has been an “increase of HIV/Aids soaring throughout central Africa” (survival International). This shows that many of the threats being aimed towards the Pygmy population as a whole,

In recent times, the media has highlighted the genocide that has been occurring in Darfur, Sudan. Darfur, Sudan is a country roughly the size of the state of Texas (Darfur Scores, n.d.). Genocide is the systematic killing of an entire ethnic group of people from a national, ethnic, or religious group, or an attempt to do away with them all (Darfur Scores, n.d.). Beginning around 2003, according to Darfur Scores (n.d.), “the Sudanese government in Khartoum and the government-sponsored Janjaweed militia have used rape, displacement, organized starvation, threats against aid workers and mass murder. Violence, disease, and displacement continue to kill thousands of innocent Darfurians every month.”

Over the course of human history, many believe that the “Congo Free State”, which lasted from the 1880s to the early 1900s, was one of the worst colonial states in the age of Imperialism and was one of the worst humanitarian disasters over time. Brutal methods of collecting rubber, which led to the deaths of countless Africans along with Europeans, as well as a lack of concern from the Belgian government aside from the King, combined to create the most potent example of the evils of colonialism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s. The Congo colonial experience, first as the Congo Free State then later as Belgian Congo, was harmful to that region of Africa both then and now because of the lack of Belgian and International

Despite its immense potential, very little of this wealth has benefited the Congolese people. Instead, all of its riches have attracted adventurers, warlords, corrupt governments, and unscrupulous corporations, and divided the population into competing groups. This is the main source of the conflict that rids the majority of eastern DRC (“The world factbook,” 2017).

The Democratic Republic of Congo is a young and embattled nation that is attempting to rise up out of a long history of merciless abuse. I believe the problems began from its very inception. It's the place King Leopold of Belgium took control of an area the measure of France and Germany combined, and built on empire on forced labor. The DRC was doomed from the very start. Progress toward competent governance in Africa has been hindered again and again by the endeavors of head of state to stay in power after their established terms lapse. These so called statesmen are for themselves, lining their own pockets. They have become as bad if not worse than the former colonial government because they are doing it to their own people. Do you think there

In the past, many incidents of genocide have occurred, like the Armenian genocide or the Rwandan genocide. While these incidents may seem unrelated to current times, similar incidents are starting to occur in many parts of the world and one such place is Congo. Many sources hint that the conflict that occurs in Congo is a genocide because many elements of genocide appear in the conflict like classification or dehumanization. While what they say has some truth in the sense that this conflict contains some element of genocide but, not enough elements are present to make it a genocide. Although many would believe that the conflict in Congo is a genocide, there is evidence of the conflict being a territorial and power dispute because some countries invading Congo want the resources, others want power, and the cause of the conflict in Congo is the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide.

This is a tale of horror and tragedy in the Congo, beginning with the brutal and exploitative regime of King Leopold II of Belgium, and culminating with the downfall of one of Africa’s most influential figures, Patrice Lumumba. The Congo is but one example of the greater phenomenon of European occupation of Africa. The legacy of this period gives rise to persistent problems in the Congo and throughout Africa. Understanding the roots and causes of this event, as focused through the lense of the Congo, is the subject of this paper.

The Republic of Congo’s government will continue to weaken and will not be able to work successfully. To strengthen the economy you must first have balance in the political development and democracy, which in fact is organized by policies modeled by The World Bank (International Monetary Fund 6).