The Democratic Republic of the Congo - Analysis, Initiatives
and Recommendations to a Major Conflict
in the Heart of Africa

by

 Enno Dreier

Table of Contents

A Introduction  3

B Root Causes of the Conflict 3

1. Colonial Heritage  3
2. Mobutu’s Kleptocracy 5
3. Import of the Rwanda-Uganda conflict  7
4. The Kabila Era  8
5. Congo’s Wealth 8
6. The Conflict System 9

C Undertaken Initiatives to solve the Conflict  10

D Recommendations and Future Prospects 12

1. Credible Peace Enforcement  13
2. International Pressure on Rwanda and Uganda 13
3. Stronger Control of Economic Involvement and cutting off the arms flow 14
4. Negotiations  14
5. Peacekeeping and Democratization  14
6. International Tribunal on War Crimes in the DRC  15
7. Serious and Neutral Journalism 15

E Conclusion  15

F Referen 17

A Introduction

To call the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) one of the most complex ones in history is no hyperbole. The involvement of up to 20 different parties and the various interests that occur might else be found only in the complexity of the 30 Years’ War of 17th century Europe. Indeed many parallels exist between these two wars except maybe the fact that the former one can be regarded as war of state-building while the war in the DRC can be regarded as a state-collapsing war (van Crefeld 1999: 223-251). 

Due to the number of African countries involved, the estimated loss of 2,000,000 lives (Tshiyembé 2003), the complex role of economy, and the mere size of the country, it seems sad but true that ‘peace on the African continent cannot become a reality until there is peace in the DRC’ (Guéhenno 2002: 78). 

When considering such a conflict it is crucial to analyze the root causes of the conflict, even if they lie in the past, because these are necessary for understanding and addressing the conflict. Therefore a large part of this report will deal with historic, economic and systemic analysis. B Root Causes of the Conflict

1. Colonial Heritage

Between 2500 B.C. and 500 B.C. Bantu-speaking peasants migrated into the area of today’s DRC. They can be called the ancestors of the Lende and Bahutu, large ethnic groups still residing in the region. Since the 13th century A.C. pastoral Tutsi and Hema moved into the region, mostly from the Nile region and Ethiopia (Auswärtiges Amt 2003). 

From the 16th century onwards the region suffered, like most parts of Africa, from slavery exploitation. About 5,000,000 Africans were exported mainly to the Americas. The slave traders, mainly Portuguese, regarded it as important that there should not be proper communication between the different ethnic groups. As a matter of fact, they deliberately pitted them against each other (Michigan State University 2003). 

In addition to the slave trade the region was proselytized by predominantly catholic missioners. The missionaries fortified the differences between the various ethnic groups. The group members had to carry identity cards that stated to which clan they belonged. Some THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO groups were regarded worthier than others. In the Congo region the missionaries mainly focused on educating the clans belonging to the Tutsi/Hema group. On the other hand those clans that belonged to ethnic group of Hutu/Lendu were neglected (International Crisis Group 2003 A: 2).

From 1879 – 1885 the Scottish explorer Sir Henry Stanley eventually bought the region for the Belgian king, Leopold II. After the Berlin Conference in 1885, when the colonial powers agreed about the colonial frontiers in Africa, the Congo Free State was founded. The exploitation of the natural resources in the region was started under Belgian rule. The indigenous population was subjected to repressive labour mobilization in the mines of the Belgian Crown. The Hema, due to their higher level of education, were normally put in charge of supervising the Lendu labour forces on plantations and in mines (International Crisis Group 2003 A: 2).

After Leopold’s death in 1908 the country was annexed as a Belgian colony, now named “Congo Belgique”. Under Belgian rule the tensions within eastern Congo, the main conflict region currently, increased. Following a Belgian immigration programme, the Banyamulenge (Batutsi) and Banyarwanda (Bahutu) migrated from Rwanda into the area of Kivu. According to Pottier (2002: 20, 25-26) ‘Belgium pursued its own brand of apartheid by having separate settlements for Banyarwanda and autochthones’, added to a growing scarcity in arable land that lead to the rise of ethnic consciousness in eastern Congo and Rwanda. In 1958 major struggles broke out in the capital, Kinshasa. In 1960 Belgium granted the country its independence, large because they feared a decolonisation war similar to what occurred in other African countries (Countryreports.org 2003).

The first democratic elections saw Joseph Kasavubu elected as President and Patrice Lumumba as Prime Minister. Shortly after the elections Katanga Province declared its independence – leading to a war of secession. A desperate Lumumba asked the Soviet Union for assistance – a move which discredited him as a communist in the western world. As a result, the US and Belgium supported General Joseph-Désiré Mobutu in his successful coup d’etat. Patrice Lumumba was assassinated by members of the Belgium Secret Service which led to the establishment of a pro-western government and the end of the war of secession (Kinder; Hilgemann 1978: 268).

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