The Congo Civil War, or Congo Crisis, was a complex political tumult that began just days following Belgium’s granting of Congolese independence in 1960. Lasting four years, the associated violence claimed an estimated 100,000 lives including the nation’s first Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, and UN Secretary Dag Hammarskjöld, who was killed in a plane crash as he attempted to mediate the crisis. Escalating with the secession of the southernmost province of Katanga, the conflict concluded five years later with a united Congo emerging under the dictatorship of Joseph-Désiré Mobutu.
On June 30, 1960, Belgium negotiated post-colonial mining rights in declaring an independent Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Yet within days, soldiers of the Congolese army mutinied, demanding increased pay and the removal of white officers from their ranks. When Belgium intervened militarily, more soldiers rebelled. Many of these soldiers gravitated toward the radical nationalist Prime Minister Patrice Emery Lumumba.
Then, dominated by Belgian business interests, the mineral-rich Katanga province under the leadership of Moïse Kapenda Tshombe seceded from the DRC with Belgian support. Congolese President Joseph Kasavubu and Prime Minister Lumumba asked and received a peacekeeping force from the United Nations (UN).
The conflict also became the site of a dangerous Cold War “proxy” contest between western powers led by the United States and the Soviet Union-led Communist bloc. Under pressure from western nations and in exchange for UN support, President Kasavubu purged his government of radical elements including Prime Minister Lumumba. The ultra-nationalist Lumumba, though supported by the Congolese, was viewed by Western business leaders as an obstacle to their continued investments in Congolese diamond mines. Fearing Lumumba was secretly a Communist, the United States was particularly adamant about his removal from power.
Lumumba responded by firing Kasavubu as both leaders claimed control over the country, and Army Chief of Staff Joseph Mobutu in turn orchestrated a military coup d’état which ousted the two leaders. Mobutu’s government was supported by western governments. The Soviet Union and other Communist nations supported Lumumba who ultimately was killed by Katangan rebels.
With his chief rival removed, Mobutu pledged nominal support to President Kasavubu and the two led the successful effort to end the Katanga secession. UN forces eventually recaptured all of Katanga province. In 1964, a new rebellion began in the Eastern Congo when armed fighters (“Simbas”) began to spread across the region. Ironically, Moïse Tshombe, who had led the secessionist Katanga province, was made prime minister with the mandate to defeat these rebels and end other regional revolts. The Simbas were defeated in November 1964.
One year later, Mobutu seized power from President Kasavubu after having persuaded Western leaders that he was the most effective leader in the fight against communism. Kasavubu and Tshombe were exiled as Mobutu set up a one-party dictatorship, controlling the nation until 1997. Nonetheless, for the first time since independence, all of the country was ruled by one government.
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hey that’s really rough and I don’t know how I’d cope with it. I just want you personally to make it through. Please DM me if you feel like you want to hurt yourself, I’d hate for anything to happen to you.
I’m not exactly sure what to say, but thanks and thanks for the offer. I’m not sure if I would ever take you up on that since I don’t really want to bother anyone too much with this stuff too much. Like I don’t mind venting on here, but at the same time I don’t want anyone to like have to constantly do emotional labor or something. Especially when I’m not really helping myself much either. And especially when it comes to heavy things like these things.
We’ve all had to rely on others. Comrade, I’ve been right up to the edge of suicide before. Now I’m just so damn happy that I’m alive. Anyhow, I’d rather do some emotional labour than see you hurt.
It’s not entirely so much the relying on others. It just more like. How to word this. To give some context I made this account with this name because it’s based off a character from some game, and the game talked about how said character can drag others down, while sort of called unstable. Which I related to. I bring this up since in the past with others. I did have someone say I was unstable. And last year before my mom died and stuff. I had this past friend who like, really hurt me. Where like, he said I was dragging everyone down after going to talk to him about stuff, and he also told me that I was delusional for talking about how the united states wanted to get rid of trans people. And so like, that really hurt
I didn’t know I was being that overbearing on that friend and I wish he would’ve said something. Like to tell me to give him some space or something. Instead he kind of just held things up and sort of just took it all out on me he was dealing with something heavy himself. However at the same time I wish to have never trusted said person considering everything else.
Still I just don’t want to like, be a burden or a plague or pest on people. If like, I am actually gonna negatively affect others like that, and I’d rather just be alone in dealing with it if that the case.
Comrade I’ve had double digit number of friends disappear after something pointless like this. It’s unfair and I know it hurts. I’m sorry. You really don’t deserve that.
Ya your friend is wrong and has a lot of stuff to work out.
I’ve felt this a billion times, and I’m not even going through what you’re going through. I hate feeling like this.
Like I said, I just don’t want you to hurt yourself. It seems like you’re going through a lot. I’m probably twice your age, so I’m really comfortable just putting up boundaries.
I’ll maybe think about if I ever do get into that like mental state, of reaching out, and thank you for offering it out. Thanks for taking the time and sorry you have been through similar