The Mad Scramble for Congo
At the heart of Congo’s prolonged crises is a scramble for its natural resources, similar to the precolonial scramble for Africa. All hands must be on deck this time to protect the over 100 million Congolese lives caught in this unfortunate unending war.
Since November 2021, M23, a reportedly Rwandan-backed militia, has once again been occupying territory in the provinces of South and North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This armed group, which was last defeated by Congolese forces in 2013, has its roots in several decades of wars and armed conflicts that continue to plunge the DRC into mourning, to the benefit of an illegal trade tainted by the blood of the people of the region. At a time when M23 is occupying the strategic town of Goma and threatening to move on to the capital Kinshasa, if we are to grasp the full scope of what is happening in Congo, it is important to understand the links between the war raging in Congo and the global economy.
‘We had never seen anything like it. We had never seen so many states trying to agree on a bad action.’ It is in these terms that Eric Vuillard, a French writer, filmmaker and screenwriter, in his book Congo, comments on the Berlin Conference of 1885 that resulted in the partitioning of Africa. He also recalls a part of the preamble of the conference’s General Act of 26 February 1885, which was the founding charter of the colonial model the Western powers applied to Africa: ‘In the name of Almighty God, to settle, in a spirit of mutual goodwill, the conditions most favourable to the development of trade and civilization in certain regions of Africa.’ Yes, it was indeed in the name of God that the raids were conducted, it was indeed in the name of God that kingdoms were subjugated, and yes, it was indeed in the name of the Almighty God that Congo has since experienced a bloody and relentless colonial history that has been slow to end.
It is worth noting that this General Act was the conclusion of several months of intense discussions held as part of the ‘Kongokonferenz’ or ‘Congo Conference’ convened by German chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, with the support of the French government. This came in response to rising tensions among European nations who wished to establish clear rules on the occupation and exploitation of the African continent. The Congo Conference primarily aimed to establish rules under which the Congo River Basin, a rich expanse of land and water with unparalleled economic and geostrategic advantages, would be administered. Of the 38 articles constituting the Berlin General Act, 25 directly pertain to the Congo Basin, eight to the Niger Basin, five to the general provisions for the ratification of the Act and two solely to new conditions of occupation and partitioning of the remaining African coasts...
Every year, The Republic publishes the most ambitious writing focused on Africa, from news and analysis to long-form features.
To continue reading, Register for a Free Pass.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
