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162-578: Other major events Congolese: Other major events The Congo Crisis (French: Crise congolaise ) was a period of political upheaval and conflict between 1960 and 1965 in the Republic of the Congo (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo ). The crisis began almost immediately after the Congo became independent from Belgium and ended, unofficially, with the entire country under

324-675: A communist and, hoping to fragment the nationalist movement, supported rival, ethnic-based parties like CONAKAT. Many Belgians hoped that an independent Congo would form part of a federation, like the French Community or Britain's Commonwealth of Nations , and that close economic and political association with Belgium would continue. As independence approached, the Belgian government organised Congolese elections in May 1960 . These resulted in an MNC relative majority . The proclamation of

486-474: A lieutenant-colonel in the army, broke this deadlock with a coup d'état , expelled the Soviet advisors and established a new government effectively under his own control. Lumumba was taken captive and subsequently executed in 1961. A rival government of the " Free Republic of the Congo " was founded in the eastern city of Stanleyville by Lumumba supporters led by Antoine Gizenga . It gained Soviet support but

648-547: A College of Commissionaires-General ( Collège des Commissaires-généraux ) consisting of a panel of university graduates, led by Justin Bomboko . Soviet military advisors were ordered to leave. Allegedly, the coup was intended to force the politicians to take a cooling-off period before they could resume control. In practice, however, Mobutu sided with Kasa-Vubu against Lumumba, who was placed under house arrest, guarded by Ghanaian UN troops and an outer ring of ANC soldiers. Kasa-Vubu

810-542: A ceasefire failed, UN troops launched Operation Grandslam and occupied Élisabethville, prompting Tshombe to leave the country. A ceasefire was agreed upon soon thereafter. Indian UN troops, exceeding their orders, then occupied Jadotville, preventing Katangese loyalists from regrouping. Gradually, the UN overran the rest of the Katanga and, on 17 January 1963, Tshombe surrendered his final stronghold of Kolwezi , effectively ending

972-513: A change in the events that comprise the day-to-day life of a person and those in their close circle, such as the loss of a job, extreme financial hardship, substance addiction/abuse, and other situations that are life-altering and require action that is outside the "normal" daily routine. A person going through a crisis experiences a state of mental disequilibrium, in which the ego struggles to balance both internal and external demands. In this case, said person resorts to coping mechanisms to deal with

1134-401: A coordinated MNC-L reaction to the news. Both chambers of Parliament, however, supported Lumumba and denounced Kasa-Vubu's action. Lumumba attempted to dismiss Kasa-Vubu from his position, but could not get support for this, precipitating a constitutional crisis. Ostensibly in order to resolve the deadlock, Joseph-Désiré Mobutu launched a bloodless coup and replaced both Kasa-Vubu and Lumumba with

1296-475: A crisis, it is crucial to be able to identify the signs that indicate they are undergoing an internal conflict. These signs, as well as the aforementioned coping mechanisms, include: As aforementioned, a crisis to this day can be overcome by implementing mechanisms such as: sleep , rejection , physical exercise , meditation and thinking . To assist individuals in regaining emotional equilibrium, intervention can be used. The overall goal of crisis intervention

1458-454: A diplomatic solution while actually continuing its steady advance. The FAZ, which had been weak all along, was unable to mount any serious resistance to the strong AFDL and its foreign sponsors. Mobutu fled first to his palace at Gbadolite and then to Rabat , Morocco , where he died on 7 September 1997. Kabila proclaimed himself president on 17 May, and immediately ordered a violent crackdown to restore order. He then attempted to reorganise

1620-399: A frightening or fraught experience. In general, crisis is the situation of a "complex system" when the system functions poorly (the system still functions, but does not break down), an immediate decision is necessary to stop the further disintegration of the system, but the causes of the dysfunction are not immediately identified (the causes are so many, or unknown, that it is impossible to take

1782-675: A general revolution rather than a mere Banyamulenge uprising. Banyamulenge elements and non-Tutsi militias coalesced into the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (AFDL) under the leadership of Laurent-Désiré Kabila , who had been a long-time opponent of the Mobutu government and was a leader of one of the three main rebel groups that founded the AFDL. While the AFDL was an ostensibly Zairian rebel movement, Rwanda had played

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1944-546: A key role in its formation. Observers of the war, as well as the Rwandan Defense Minister and vice-president at the time, Paul Kagame , claim that the AFDL was formed in and directed from Kigali and contained not only Rwandan-trained troops but also regulars of the RPA . According to expert observers, as well as Kagame himself, Rwanda played the largest role of a foreign actor, if not the largest role of all, in

2106-496: A localist party led by Moïse Tshombe , was the third major organisation; it advocated federalism and primarily represented the southern province of Katanga . These were joined by a number of smaller parties which emerged as the nationalist movement developed, including the radical Parti Solidaire Africain (PSA), and factions representing the interests of minor ethnic groups like the Alliance des Bayanzi (ABAZI). Although it

2268-505: A major offensive against South Kasai. The attack was extremely successful, but during the course of the offensive, the ANC became involved in infighting between the Baluba and Bena Lulua ethnic groups. and perpetrated a number of large massacres of Luba civilians. Around 3,000 were killed. The violence of the advance caused an exodus of thousands of Baluba civilians who fled their homes to escape

2430-508: A mandate to arrest foreign mercenaries wherever they encountered them. In September 1961, an attempt to detain a group of Katangese mercenaries without violence during Operation Morthor went wrong and turned into a fire-fight. ONUC's claim to impartiality was undermined in mid-September when a company of Irish UN troops were captured by numerically superior Katangese forces following a six-day siege in Jadotville . Katanga proceeded to hold

2592-518: A means to minimize the threat in eastern Zaire, the new Rwandan state also sought to set up a puppet regime in Kinshasa. This goal was not particularly threatening to other states in the region because it was ostensibly a means to securing Rwandan stability and because many of them also opposed Mobutu. Kigali was further aided by the tacit support of the United States, which supported Kagame as

2754-462: A member of the new generation of African leaders. However, the true intentions of Rwanda are not entirely clear. Some authors have proposed that dismantling refugee camps was a means of replenishing Rwanda's depleted population and workforce following the genocide; because the destruction of the camps was followed by forced repatriation of Tutsi regardless of whether they were Rwandan or Zairian. The intervention may also have been motivated by revenge;

2916-489: A misperception. An economic crisis is a sharp transition to a recession . See for example 1994 economic crisis in Mexico , Argentine economic crisis (1999–2002) , South American economic crisis of 2002 , Economic crisis of Cameroon . Crisis theory is a central achievement in the conclusions of Karl Marx 's critique of Capital. A financial crisis may be a banking crisis or currency crisis . Crises pertaining to

3078-575: A moderate policy in the Congo, his successor U Thant supported a more radical policy of direct involvement in the conflict. Katanga released the captured Irish soldiers in mid-October as part of a cease-fire deal in which ONUC agreed to pull its troops back—a propaganda coup for Tshombe. Restated American support for the UN mission, and the murder of ten Italian UN pilots in Port-Empain in November 1961, strengthened international demands to resolve

3240-501: A possible military government to restore order while others petitioned the colonial government for crackdowns. As law and order began to break down, white civilians formed militia groups known as Corps de Voluntaires Européens ("European Volunteer Corps") to police their neighborhoods, but these militias were outlawed on March 25. In the fallout from the Léopoldville riots, the report of a Belgian parliamentary working group on

3402-618: A proxy-regime in Kinshasa. Several factors that led to the First Congo War remained in place after Kabila's accession to power. Prominent among these were ethnic tensions in eastern DRC, where the government still had little control. There the historical animosities remained and the opinion that Banyamulenge, as well as all Tutsi, were foreigners was reinforced by the foreign occupation in their defence. Furthermore, Rwanda had not been able to satisfactorily address its security concerns. By forcibly repatriating refugees, Rwanda had imported

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3564-596: A rational, informed decision to reverse the situation). By "complex system" we mean something like a family, economy, or society; simple systems do not enter crises. We can speak about a crisis of moral values, an economical or political crisis, but not a motor crisis. The crisis has several defining characteristics. Seeger, Sellnow, and Ulmer say that crises have four defining characteristics that are "specific, unexpected, and non-routine events or series of events that [create] high levels of uncertainty and threat or perceived threat to an organization's high priority goals." Thus

3726-581: A rebel government in November 1960 in opposition to the central government in Léopoldville. The Gizenga government was recognised by some states, including the Soviet Union and China, as the official government of the Congo and could call on an approximate 5,500 troops compared to the central government's 7,000. Faced with UN pressure, the Gizenga government however collapsed in January 1962 after Gizenga

3888-656: A second invasion from Rwanda and Uganda, triggering the Second Congo War in 1998. Some historians and analysts view the First and Second Congo Wars as part of a continuous conflict with lasting effects that continue to affect the region today. As ethnic Ngbandi , Mobutu came to power in 1965 and enjoyed support from the United States government because of his anti-communist stance while in office. However, Mobutu's totalitarian rule and corrupt policies allowed

4050-485: A sense of belongingness. When appropriate support for emotional experiences is provided, climate change-induced emotions are adaptive. The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario proposed the ABC model for dealing with client's interventions in crises: Moreover, another method for helping individuals who are suffering in a crisis is active listening; it is defined as seeing circumstances from another perspective and letting

4212-597: A set "native policy" ( politique indigène )—in contrast to the British and the French, who generally favoured the system of indirect rule whereby traditional leaders were retained in positions of authority under colonial oversight. There was also a high degree of racial segregation . Large numbers of white immigrants who moved to the Congo after the end of World War II came from across the social spectrum, but were nonetheless always treated as superior to black people. During

4374-454: A situation. This is preceded by events of an extraordinary nature triggering extreme tension and stress within an individual, i.e., the crisis, which then requires major decisions or actions to resolve. Crises can be triggered by a wide range of situations including, but not limited to, extreme weather conditions, sudden change in employment/financial state, medical emergencies, long-term illness, and social or familial turmoil. Crises are simply

4536-526: A smaller number of Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) soldiers. They attempted to reach the SAF base at Yei , not knowing that it had already been overrun by the SPLA. The column of about 4,000 fighters and their families was ambushed by the SPLA during Operation Thunderbolt on 12 March, and mostly destroyed; 2,000 were killed, and over 1,000 captured. The survivors fled to Juba . Meanwhile, the AFDL reached Kinshasa by

4698-1238: A sudden expansion in the attractor. This phenomenon is termed as interior crisis in a chaotic system. First Congo War Decisive AFDL victory [REDACTED]   Zaire [REDACTED]   Sudan [REDACTED]   Chad [REDACTED] Ex- FAR / ALiR [REDACTED] Interahamwe [REDACTED] CNDD-FDD [REDACTED] UNITA [REDACTED] ADF [REDACTED] FLNC Supported by: [REDACTED]   France [REDACTED]   Central African Republic [REDACTED]   China [REDACTED]   Israel [REDACTED]   Kuwait (denied) [REDACTED] AFDL [REDACTED]   Rwanda [REDACTED]   Uganda [REDACTED]   Burundi [REDACTED]   Angola [REDACTED] SPLA [REDACTED]   Eritrea Supported by: [REDACTED]   South Africa [REDACTED]   Zambia [REDACTED]   Zimbabwe [REDACTED]   Ethiopia [REDACTED]   Tanzania [REDACTED]   United States (covertly) AFDL: 57,000 Other major events The First Congo War , also known as Africa's First World War ,

4860-755: A team of over 100 advisors led by Che Guevara to advise the Simbas on tactics and doctrine. The Simba rebellion coincided with a wide escalation of the Cold War amid the Gulf of Tonkin incident and it has been speculated that, had the rebellion not been rapidly defeated, a full-scale American military intervention could have occurred as in Vietnam . After its early string of successes, the Simba rebellion began to encounter local resistance as it encroached on areas outside of

5022-516: A unified state. Less than a month after the Katangese secession, on 8 August, a section of Kasai Province situated slightly to the north of Katanga also declared its autonomy from the central government as the Mining State of South Kasai ( Sud-Kasaï ) based around the city of Bakwanga . South Kasai was much smaller than Katanga, but was also a mining region. It was largely populated by

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5184-432: Is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in number, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters. An endangered species is usually a taxonomic species , but may be another evolutionary significant unit . The World Conservation Union (IUCN) has classified 38 percent of the 44,837 species assessed by 2008 as threatened. For information about crises in

5346-410: Is needed (make a plan of action), and finally to take action/intervention, based on the individual's skills to regain equilibrium. In the context of natural disasters and other climate change-related crises, emotional activation is common. Collective processing of emotional experiences is an important part of enabling individuals to increase in their resilience, leading to greater community engagement and

5508-572: Is not usually considered their initial motivation for Rwandan intervention in the First Congo War. As a close ally of the RPF, Uganda also played a major role in the First Congo War. Prominent members of the RPF had fought alongside Yoweri Museveni in the Ugandan Bush War that brought him to power, and Museveni allowed the RPF to use Uganda as a base during the 1990 offensive into Rwanda and subsequent civil war . Given their historical ties,

5670-426: Is the consequence of a natural hazard (e.g. volcanic eruption , earthquake , landslide ) which moves from potential in to an active phase, and as a result affects human activities. Human vulnerability, exacerbated by the lack of planning or lack of appropriate emergency management , leads to financial, structural, and human losses. The resulting loss depends on the capacity of the population to support or resist

5832-517: Is their social support system, which can come in the form of family, friends, coworkers, or health professionals. It is important that a support system consists of people that the individual trusts. Although these support systems play a crucial role in aiding an individual through a crisis, they are also the underlying cause of two thirds of mental health crises. The aforementioned mental health crises can include marital issues, abandonment, parental conflict and family struggles. In order to aid someone in

5994-422: Is to get the individual back to a pre-crisis level of functioning or higher with the help of a social support group. As said by Judith Swan, there's a strong correlation between the client's emotional balance and the trust in their support system in helping them throughout their crisis. The steps of crisis intervention are: to assess the situation based on behavior patterns of the individual, decide what type of help

6156-582: The Mouvement National Congolais (MNC), was a united front organisation dedicated to achieving independence "within a reasonable" time. It was created around a charter which was signed by, among others, Patrice Lumumba , Cyrille Adoula and Joseph Iléo , but others accused the party of being too moderate. Lumumba became a leading figure within the MNC, and by the end of 1959, the party claimed to have 58,000 members. The MNC's main rival

6318-486: The Central African Republic , and diplomatically advocated for international intervention to stop the AFDL's advance, but later backed down due to U.S. pressure. China and Israel provided the Mobutu regime with technical assistance, while Kuwait also reportedly provided $ 64 million to Zaire for the purchase of weapons, but later denied doing so. In 1997 United States European Command supervised

6480-637: The Copperbelt of neighbouring Northern Rhodesia (then part of the Central African Federation ) than with the rest of the Congo, and because of its economic importance it had been administered separately from the rest of the country under the Belgians. CONAKAT furthermore contended that Katangese people were ethnically distinct from other Congolese. The secession was partly motivated by the Katangese separatists' desire to keep more of

6642-746: The DRC Mapping Exercise Report . Kabila's forces launched an offensive in March 1997, and demanded that the Kinshasa government surrender. The rebels took Kasenga on 27 March. The government denied the rebels' success, starting a long pattern of false statements from the Defense Minister on the progress and conduct of the war. Negotiations were proposed in late March, and on 2 April a new Prime Minister of Zaire , Étienne Tshisekedi —a longtime rival of Mobutu—was installed. Kabila, by this point in control of roughly one-quarter of

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6804-468: The Force Publique on 5 July 1960 Lieutenant-General Émile Janssens , the Belgian commander of the Force Publique , refused to see Congolese independence as marking a change in the nature of command. The day after the independence festivities, he gathered the black non-commissioned officers of his Léopoldville garrison and told them that things under his command would stay the same, summarising

6966-593: The Kanyarwanda War , which involved several massacres. Despite a strong Rwandan presence in Mobutu's government, in 1981, Zaire adopted a restrictive citizenship law which denied the Banyamulenge and Banyarwanda citizenship and therewith all political rights. Though never enforced, the law greatly angered individuals of Rwandan descent and contributed to a rising sense of ethnic hatred. From 1993 to 1996 Hunde, Nande, and Nyanga youth regularly attacked

7128-505: The Kiswahili word for " lion "), had a populist but vague ideology, loosely based on communism, which prioritised equality and aimed to increase overall wealth. Most of the active revolutionaries were young men who hoped that the rebellion would provide them with opportunities which the government had not. The Simbas used magic to initiate members and believed that, by following a moral code, they could become invulnerable to bullets. Magic

7290-456: The Luba ethnic group , and its president, Albert Kalonji , claimed that the secession was largely sparked by persecution of the Baluba in the rest of the Congo. The South Kasai government was supported by Forminière , another Belgian mining company, which received concessions from the new state in return for financial support. Without control over Katanga and South Kasai, the central government

7452-481: The Luluabourg Constitution , after the city in which it was written, to create a compromise balance of power. The new constitution increased the power of the presidency , ending the system of joint consultation between president and prime minister, and appeased federalists by increasing the number of provinces from six to 21 while increasing their autonomy. The constitution also changed the name of

7614-530: The UN Security Council was called on 7 December 1960 to consider Soviet demands that the UN seek Lumumba's immediate release, his restoration to the head of the Congolese government and the disarming of Mobutu's forces. The pro-Lumumba resolution was defeated on 14 December 1960 by a vote of 8–2. Still in captivity, Lumumba was tortured and transported to Thysville and later to Katanga, where he

7776-782: The agrarian tribes of Congo and the Banyarwanda in the Eastern region of Congo of Kivu . When colonial boundaries were drawn in the late nineteenth century many Banyarwanda found themselves on the Congolese side of the Rwandan border, in Kivu province. The earliest of these migrants arrived before colonisation in the 1880s, followed by emigrants whom the Belgian colonizers forcibly relocated to Congo to perform manual labour (after 1908), and by another significant wave of emigrants fleeing

7938-502: The 1940s and 1950s, the Congo experienced an unprecedented level of urbanisation and the colonial administration began various development programmes aimed at making the territory into a "model colony". One of the results of the measures was the development of a new middle class of Europeanised African " évolués " in the cities. By the 1950s, the Congo had a wage labour force twice as large as that in any other African colony. The Congo's rich natural resources, including uranium— much of

8100-561: The 1990s. Under substantial internal and external pressure for a democratic transition in Zaire, Mobutu promised reform. He officially ended the one-party system he had maintained since 1967, but ultimately proved unwilling to implement broad reform, alienating allies both at home and abroad. In fact, the Zairian state had all but ceased to exist. The majority of the Zairian population relied on an informal economy for their subsistence, since

8262-488: The AFDL. However, Uganda did not support Rwanda in all aspects of the war. Museveni was reportedly much less inclined to overthrow Mobutu, preferring to keep the rebellion in the East where the former génocidaires were operating. Angola remained on the sidelines until 1997, but its entrance into the fray greatly increased the already superior strength of anti-Mobutu forces. The Angolan government chose to act primarily through

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8424-468: The Baluba nation". Gizenga's soldiers then shot 15 political prisoners in retaliation, including Lumumba's dissident Minister of Communications, Alphonse Songolo . Since its initial resolution of July 1960, the UN had issued further resolutions calling for the total withdrawal of Belgian and mercenary forces from Katanga in progressively stronger terms. By 1961, ONUC comprised nearly 20,000 men. Although their mandate prevented them from taking sides, ONUC had

8586-552: The Banyamulenge Rebellion was to seize power in Zaire's eastern Kivu provinces and combat the extremist Hutu forces attempting to continue the genocide in their new home. However, the rebellion did not remain Tutsi-dominated for long. Mobutu's harsh and selfish rule created enemies in virtually all sectors of Zairian society. As a result, the new rebellion benefited from massive public support and grew to be

8748-607: The Banyamulenge political power in the east in hopes that they, as a minority, would keep a tight grip on power and prevent more populous ethnicities from forming an opposition. This move aggravated the existing ethnic tensions by strengthening the Banyamulenge's hold over important stretches of land in North Kivu that indigenous people claimed as their own. From 1963 to 1966 the Hunde and Nande ethnic groups of North Kivu fought against Rwandan emigrants — both Tutsi and Hutu – in

8910-727: The Banyamulenge, leading to a total of 14,000 deaths. In 1995 the Zairian Parliament ordered all peoples of Rwandan or Burundian descent repatriated to their countries of origin, including the Banyamulenge. Due to political exclusion and ethnic violence, as early as 1991 the Banyamulenge developed ties to the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), a mainly Tutsi rebel movement based in Uganda but with aspirations to power in Rwanda. The most deciding event in precipitating

9072-614: The Belgian nor the Congolese government intended the colonial social order to end immediately. The Belgian government hoped that whites might keep their position indefinitely. The Republic of the Congo was still reliant on colonial institutions like the Force Publique to function from day to day, and white technical experts, installed by the Belgians, were retained in the broad absence of suitably qualified black Congolese replacements. Many Congolese people had assumed that independence would produce tangible and immediate social change, so

9234-657: The Belgian operation, Lumumba denounced it and called for "all Congolese to defend our republic against those who menace it." At Lumumba's request, white civilians from the port city of Matadi were evacuated by the Belgian Navy on 11 July. Belgian ships then bombarded the city; at least 19 civilians were killed. This action prompted renewed attacks on whites across the country, while Belgian forces entered other towns and cities, including Léopoldville, and clashed with Congolese troops. The Belgian government subsequently announced that it would provide for Belgian bureaucrats back in

9396-449: The Congo (renamed Zaire in 1971) was transformed into a dictatorship which would endure until his deposition in 1997 . Colonial rule in the Congo began in the late 19th century. King Leopold II of Belgium , frustrated by Belgium's lack of international power and prestige, attempted to persuade the Belgian government to support colonial expansion around the then-largely unexplored Congo Basin . The Belgian government's ambivalence about

9558-406: The Congo and that individual regions became specialised . On many occasions, the interests of the government and private enterprise became closely tied and the state helped companies with strikebreaking and countering other efforts by the indigenous population to better their lot. The country was split into nesting, hierarchically organised administrative subdivisions, and run uniformly according to

9720-416: The Congo might follow the same path as Cuba . Lumumba's appeal for Soviet support split the government and led to mounting pressure from Western countries to remove him from power. In addition, both Tshombe and Kalonji appealed to Kasa-Vubu, whom they believed to be both a moderate and federalist, to move against Lumumba's centralism and resolve the secession issue. Meanwhile, Mobutu took effective control of

9882-417: The Congolese capital, on 4 January 1959 after a political demonstration turned violent. The Force Publique , the colonial gendarmerie , used force against the rioters—at least 49 people were killed, and total casualties may have been as high as 500. The nationalist parties' influence expanded outside the major cities for the first time, and nationalist demonstrations and riots became a regular occurrence over

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10044-475: The First Congo War. Kigali was instrumental in the formation of the AFDL and sent its own troops to fight alongside the rebels. While its actions were originally sparked by the security threat posed by the Zairian-based génocidaires, Kigali was pursuing multiple goals during its invasion of Zaire. The first and foremost of these was the suppression of génocidaires who had been launching attacks against

10206-553: The Irishmen as prisoners of war, a development that deeply embarrassed the UN mission and its proponents. On 18 September 1961, Hammarskjöld flew to Ndola , just across the border in Northern Rhodesia , to attempt to broker a cease-fire between UN and Katangese forces. His aircraft crashed before landing at Ndola Airport , killing him and everybody else on board. In stark contrast to Hammarskjöld's attempts to pursue

10368-491: The Katangese secession. Following the end of the Katanga secession, political negotiations began to reconcile the disparate political factions. The negotiations coincided with the formation of an émigré political group, the Conseil National de Libération (CNL), by dissident Lumumbists and others in neighbouring Congo-Brazzaville . The negotiations culminated in the creation of a new, revised constitution, known as

10530-441: The Katangese secession. Under Tshombe's interim government, fresh elections were scheduled for 30 March and the rebellion broke out in the central and eastern parts of the Congo. The period of political crisis had led to widespread disenchantment with the central government brought in by independence. Demands for a "second independence" from kleptocracy and political infighting in the capital grew. The "second independence" slogan

10692-557: The Kitona Declaration in December 1961 in which he agreed in principle to accept the authority of the central government and state constitution and to abandon any claim to Katangese independence. Following the declaration, however, talks between Tshombe and Adoula reached a deadlock, while Katangese forces continued to harass UN troops. Diminishing support and Belgium's increasing reluctance to support Katanga demonstrated that

10854-693: The MNC-Kalonji (MNC-K), while the majority group became the MNC-Lumumba (MNC-L). The split divided the party's support base into those who remained with Lumumba, chiefly in the Stanleyville region in the north-east, and those who backed the MNC-K, which became most popular around the southern city of Élisabethville and among the Luba ethnic group . Major riots broke out in Léopoldville ,

11016-495: The MNC-L delegation. The Belgian government had hoped for a period of at least 30 years before independence, but Congolese pressure at the conference led to 30 June 1960 being set as the date. Delegates failed to reach an agreement concerning the issues of federalism , ethnicity and the future role of Belgium in Congolese affairs. Belgians began campaigning against Lumumba, whom they wanted to marginalise; they accused him of being

11178-426: The MNC-L's old domain. The People's Republic also suffered from a lack of coherent social and economic policy, contributing to an inability to administer its own territory. From the end of August 1964 the rebels began to lose ground to the ANC. Albertville and Lisala were recaptured in late August and early September. Tshombe, backed by Mobutu, recalled many of his former mercenaries from the Katangese secession to oppose

11340-531: The Rwandan and Ugandan governments were closely allied and Museveni worked closely with Kagame throughout the First Congo War. Ugandan soldiers were present in Zaire throughout the conflict and Museveni likely helped Kagame plan and direct the AFDL. Lt. Col. James Kabarebe of the AFDL, for example, was a former member of Uganda's National Resistance Army , the military wing of the rebel movement that brought Museveni to power, and French and Belgian intelligence reported that 15,000 Ugandan-trained Tutsi fought for

11502-595: The Rwandan forces, as well as the AFDL, massacred retreating Hutu refugees in several known instances. A commonly cited factor for Rwandan actions is that the RPF, which had recently come to power in Kigali, had come to see itself as the protector of the Tutsi nation and was therefore partially acting in defense of its Zairian brethren. Rwanda possibly also harbored ambitions to annex portions of eastern Zaire. Pasteur Bizimungu , president of Rwanda from 1994 to 2000, presented

11664-447: The Simba. Mercenaries, led by "Mad Mike" Hoare and mostly whites from central and southern Africa, were formed into a unit known as 5 Commando ANC . The unit served as the spearhead of the ANC and were involved in unsanctioned killing, torture, looting and rapes in recaptured rebel areas. The mercenaries were also materially supported by the CIA. Crisis The English word crisis

11826-465: The Soviet Union, which agreed to provide weapons, logistical and material support. Around 1,000 Soviet military advisors soon landed in the Congo. Lumumba's actions distanced him from the rest of the government, especially Kasa-Vubu, who feared the implications of Soviet intervention. The Americans also feared that a Soviet-aligned Congo could form the basis of a major expansion of communism into central Africa. With Soviet support, 2,000 ANC troops launched

11988-535: The Sudanese government in the Second Sudanese Civil War at the time. The Mobutu-loyal forces were collapsing so quickly, however, that they could not prevent the AFDL, SPLA and Ugandan military from occupying northeastern Zaire. Sudan-allied Ugandan insurgent groups which had been based in the region were forced to retreat into southern Sudan alongside FAZ troops that had not yet surrendered and

12150-522: The U.S. Army's Southern Europe Task Force (SETAF) and elements of two Marine Expeditionary Units to carry out Operation Guardian Retrieval , to evacuate approximately 550 US citizens from the country. SETAF prepared Joint Task Force Guardian Retrieval to carry out the non-combatant evacuation (NEO). The Marine Corps supported the evacuation with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), special operations capable, which had initially been sent to Albania, to support Operation Silver Wake . The 26th MEU

12312-478: The United States intervened militarily in Stanleyville to recover hostages from Simba captivity. The Simbas were defeated and collapsed soon after. Following the elections in March 1965, a new political stalemate developed between Tshombe and Kasa-Vubu, forcing the government into near-paralysis. Mobutu mounted a second coup d'état in November 1965, taking personal control of the country. Under Mobutu's rule,

12474-534: The Zairian state to decay, evidenced by a 65% decrease in Zairian GDP between independence in 1960 and the end of Mobutu's reign in 1997. Following the end of the Cold War in 1992, the United States stopped supporting Mobutu in favor of what it called a "new generation of African leaders", including Rwanda's Paul Kagame and Uganda's Yoweri Museveni . A wave of democratization swept across Africa during

12636-501: The Zairian-UNITA relationship. Due to its ties to the Mobutu government, UNITA also participated in the First Congo War. The greatest impact that it had on the war was probably that it gave Angola reason to join the anti-Mobutu coalition. However, UNITA forces fought alongside FAZ forces in at least several instances. Among other examples, Kagame claimed that his forces fought a pitched battle against UNITA near Kinshasa towards

12798-538: The abuses is unknown because the AFDL and RPF carefully managed NGO and press access to areas where atrocities were thought to have occurred. However Amnesty International said as many as 200,000 Rwandese Hutu refugees were massacred by them and the Rwandan Defence Forces and aligned forces. The United Nations similarly documented mass killings of civilians by Rwandan, Ugandan and the AFDL soldiers in

12960-598: The apparent sudden collapse of order in the Congo, as the world view of the Congolese situation prior to independence—due largely to Belgian propaganda—was one of peace, stability, and strong control by the authorities. Lumumba's stance appeared to many Belgians to justify their prior concerns about his radicalism. On 9 July, Belgium deployed paratroopers, without the Congolese state's permission, in Kabalo and elsewhere to protect fleeing white civilians. The Belgian intervention divided Lumumba and Kasa-Vubu; while Kasa-Vubu accepted

13122-561: The army, routing foreign aid and promotions to specific units and officers to secure their allegiance. On 5 September 1960, Kasa-Vubu announced on national radio that he had unilaterally dismissed Lumumba , using the massacres in South Kasai as a pretext and with the promise of American backing. Andrew Cordier , the American UN representative in the Congo, used his position to block communications by Lumumba's faction and to prevent

13284-661: The capital, Kinshasa . Opposition groups included leftists who had supported Patrice Lumumba (1925–1961), as well as ethnic and regional minorities opposed to the nominal dominance of Kinshasa. Laurent-Désiré Kabila , an ethnic Luba from Katanga province who would eventually overthrow Mobutu, had fought Mobutu's régime since its inception. The inability of the Mobutuist régime to control rebel movements in its eastern provinces eventually allowed its internal and external foes to ally. Tensions had existed between various ethnic groups in eastern Zaire for centuries, especially between

13446-611: The central and eastern Congo. The Kwilu Rebellion broke out on 16 January 1964 in the cities of Idiofa and Gungu in Kwilu Province . Further disruption and uprisings then spread to Kivu in the east and later to Albertville , sparking further insurrection elsewhere in the Congo and the outbreak of the larger Simba Rebellion . The rebels began to expand their territory and rapidly advance northwards, capturing Port-Émpain, Stanleyville, Paulis and Lisala between July and August. The rebels, who called themselves "Simbas" (from

13608-492: The conflict. This manifested itself in the form of a predominantly Hutu insurgency in Rwanda's western provinces that was supported by extremist elements in eastern DRC. Without troops in the DRC, Rwanda was unable to successfully combat the insurgents. In the first days of August 1998, two brigades of the new Congolese army rebelled against the government and formed rebel groups that worked closely with Kigali and Kampala. This marked

13770-562: The conflict. Hundreds of thousands died as the government forces, supported by Sudanese militias, were overwhelmed. After Mobutu's ousting, Kabila's government renamed the country the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, his regime remained unstable, as he sought to distance himself from his former Rwandan and Ugandan backers. In response, Kabila expelled foreign troops and forged alliances with regional powers such as Angola, Zimbabwe , and Namibia . These actions prompted

13932-502: The country, dismissed this as irrelevant and warned Tshisekedi that he would have no part in a new government if he accepted the post. There are two explanations for the restart of the rebel advance in 1997. The first, and most probable, is that Angola had joined the anti-Mobutu coalition, giving it numbers and strength far superior to the FAZ, and demanding that Mobutu be removed from power. Kagame presents another, possibly secondary, reason for

14094-631: The country. Rather than deploying Belgian troops against the mutineers as Janssens had wished, Lumumba dismissed him and renamed the Force Publique the Armée Nationale Congolaise (ANC). All black soldiers were promoted by at least one rank. Victor Lundula was promoted directly from sergeant-major to major-general and head of the army, replacing Janssens. At the same time, Joseph-Désiré Mobutu , an ex-sergeant-major and close personal aide of Lumumba, became Lundula's deputy as army chief of staff . The government attempted to stop

14256-825: The crisis, about 1.5 million settled in eastern Zaire. These refugees included Tutsi who fled the Hutu génocidaires as well as one million Hutu that fled the Tutsi RPF's subsequent retaliation. Prominent among the latter group were the génocidaires themselves, such as elements of the former Rwandan Army, Forces armées rwandaises  [ fr ] (FAR), and independent Hutu extremist groups known as Interahamwe . Often, these Hutu forces allied themselves with local Mai Mai militias, who granted them access to mines and weapons. Though these were initially self-defense organizations, they quickly became aggressors. The Hutu set up camps in eastern Zaire from which they attacked both

14418-509: The crowning success of the nationalist movement . Although Lumumba's address was acclaimed by figures such as Malcolm X , it nearly provoked a diplomatic incident with Belgium; even some Congolese politicians perceived it as unnecessarily provocative. Nevertheless, independence was celebrated across the Congo. Politically, the new state had a semi-presidential constitution , known as the Loi Fondamentale , in which executive power

14580-608: The deteriorating human rights situation and prevent the outbreak of full-scale civil war. The resolution "completely rejected" Katanga's claim to statehood and authorised ONUC troops to use all necessary force to "assist the Central Government of the Congo in the restoration and maintenance of law and order". The Katangese made further provocations and, in response, ONUC launched Operation Unokat to dismantle Katangese roadblocks and seize strategic positions around Élisabethville. Faced with international pressure, Tshombe signed

14742-413: The disaster, their resilience. This understanding is concentrated in the formulation: "disasters occur when hazards meet vulnerability ". A natural hazard will hence never result in a natural disaster in areas without vulnerability, e.g. strong earthquakes in uninhabited areas. For lists of natural disasters, see the list of disasters or the list of deadliest natural disasters . An endangered species

14904-485: The east who demanded autonomy. Kabila also came to be seen as an instrument of the foreign regimes that put him in power. To counter this image and increase domestic support, he began to turn against his allies abroad. This culminated in the expulsion of all foreign forces from the DRC on 26 July 1998. The states with armed forces still in the DRC begrudgingly complied although some of them saw this as undermining their interests, particularly Rwanda, which had hoped to install

15066-519: The east, the AFDL advanced westward in two pincer movements. The northern one took Kisangani , Boende , and Mbandaka , while the southern one took Bakwanga , and Kikwit . Around this time, Sudan attempted to coordinate with remnants of the FAZ and White Legion that were retreating northward to escape the AFDL. This was to prevent Zaire from becoming a safe haven for the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and its allies, which were fighting

15228-614: The end of the war. Numerous other external actors played lesser roles in the First Congo War. Burundi , which had recently come under the rule of a pro-Tutsi leader, supported Rwandan and Ugandan involvement in Zaire but provided very limited military support. Zambia , Zimbabwe , and the South Sudanese rebel army, the SPLA , also gave measured amounts of military support to the rebel movement. Eritrea , an ally of Rwanda under Kagame, sent an entire battalion of its army to support

15390-454: The environment include: An environmental disaster is a disaster that is due to human activity and should not be confused with natural disasters ( see below ) . In this case, the impact of humans' alteration of the ecosystem has led to widespread and/or long-lasting consequences. It can include the deaths of animals (including humans) and plant systems, or severe disruption of human life, possibly requiring migration. A natural disaster

15552-483: The exiled Katangese leader, Moïse Tshombe , was recalled to head an interim administration while fresh elections were organised. Before these could be held, however, Maoist -inspired militants calling themselves the " Simbas " rose up in the east of the country. The Simbas took control of a significant amount of territory and proclaimed a communist "People's Republic of the Congo" in Stanleyville. Government forces gradually retook territory and, in November 1964, Belgium and

15714-484: The field of study in international relations , see crisis management and international crisis . In this context, a crisis can be loosely defined as a situation where there is a perception of threat, heightened anxiety, expectation of possible violence and the belief that any actions will have far-reaching consequences (Lebow, 7–10). ‹The template How-to is being considered for merging .›   A personal crisis occurs when an individual can no longer cope with

15876-477: The fighting. The involvement of the Soviet Union alarmed the United States. The American government under Eisenhower, in line with Belgian criticism, had long believed that Lumumba was a communist and that the Congo could be on track to become a strategically placed Soviet client state . In August 1960, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agents in the region reported to their agency that "Congo [is] experiencing [a] classic communist ... takeover" and warned that

16038-548: The first three characteristics are that the event is Apart from natural crises that are inherently unpredictable (volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, etc.) most of the crises that we face are created by man. Hence the requirements of their being 'unexpected' depend upon man failing to note the onset of crisis conditions. Some of our inability to recognize crises before they become dangerous is due to denial and other psychological responses that provide succor and protection for our emotions. A different set of reasons for failing to notice

16200-498: The first week of July, a mutiny broke out in the army and violence erupted between black and white civilians. Belgium sent troops to protect fleeing white citizens. Katanga and South Kasai seceded with Belgian support. Amid continuing unrest and violence, the United Nations deployed peacekeepers , but UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld refused to use these troops to help the central government in Léopoldville fight

16362-634: The former génocidaires for previously mentioned reasons but actually supported them in training and supplying for an invasion of Rwanda, forcing Kigali to act. Given the exacerbated ethnic tensions and the lack of government control in the past, Rwanda took action against the security threat posed by génocidaires who had found refuge in eastern Zaire. The government in Kigali began forming Tutsi militias for operations in Zaire probably as early as 1995 and chose to act following an exchange of fire between Rwandan Tutsi and Zairian Green Berets that marked

16524-714: The former génocidaires . Likewise, the external actors had successfully crippled the ability of the same génocidaires to use Zaire as a base for attacks. There was a pause in the rebel advance following the acquisition of this buffer territory that lasted until Angola entered the war in February 1997. During this time, Rwanda destroyed refugee camps the génocidaires had been using as safe-bases, and forcibly repatriated Tutsi to Rwanda. It also captured many lucrative diamond and coltan mines, which it later resisted relinquishing. Rwandan and aligned forces committed multiple atrocities, mainly against Hutu refugees. The true extent of

16686-574: The future of the Congo was published. It noted a strong demand for "internal autonomy". August de Schryver , the Minister of the Colonies, launched a high-profile Round Table Conference in Brussels in January 1960, with the leaders of all the major Congolese parties in attendance. Lumumba, who had been arrested following riots in Stanleyville, was released in the run-up to the conference and headed

16848-417: The government benefited from this relationship, other than personal enrichment for several officials, but it is certainly possible that Mobutu was unable to control the actions of some members of his government. Regardless of the reasoning in Kinshasa, Angola entered the war on the side of the rebels and was determined to overthrow the Mobutu government, which it saw as the only way to address the threat posed by

17010-428: The helper is tuned in emotionally. Furthermore, there are other techniques that can be used to demonstrate active listening such as paraphrasing, silence, and reflecting or mirroring. The goal in active listening is to keep the person talking about their situation. When the control parameter of a chaotic system is modified, the chaotic attractor touches an unstable periodic orbit inside the basin of attraction inducing

17172-608: The highest level decision-makers of the actor concerned: 1. threat to basic values, with a simultaneous or subsequent 2. high probability of involvement in military hostilities , and the awareness of 3. finite time for response to the external value threat. It is frequently said in Western motivational speaking that the Chinese word for "crisis" is composed of two Chinese characters signifying "danger" and "opportunity" respectively. This is, however, considered by linguists to be

17334-466: The idea led Leopold to eventually create the colony on his own account. With support from a number of Western countries, who viewed Leopold as a useful buffer between rival colonial powers, Leopold achieved international recognition for a personal colony, the Congo Free State , in 1885. By the turn of the century, however, the violence of Free State officials against indigenous Congolese and

17496-575: The independent Republic of the Congo , and the end of colonial rule, occurred as planned on 30 June 1960. In a ceremony at the Palais de la Nation in Léopoldville, King Baudouin gave a speech in which he presented the end of colonial rule in the Congo as the culmination of the Belgian " civilising mission " begun by Leopold II. After the King's address, Lumumba gave an unscheduled speech in which he angrily attacked colonialism and described independence as

17658-564: The invasion of Zaire. Likewise, Tanzania , South Africa and Ethiopia provided support to the anti-Mobutu coalition. Other than from UNITA, Mobutu also received some aid from Sudan , whom Mobutu had long supported against the SPLA, though the exact amount of aid is unclear and ultimately was unable to hinder the advance of opposing forces. Zaire also employed foreign mercenaries from several African and European countries, including Chadian troops. France also provided Mobutu's government with financial support and military aid, facilitated by

17820-572: The latter days of Belgian rule amid worries that the MNC might seek to nationalise the company's assets after independence. UMHK was largely owned by the Société Générale de Belgique , a prominent holding company based in Brussels that had close ties to the Belgian government. Encouraged by the UMHK, the Belgian government provided military support to Katanga and ordered its civil servants in

17982-513: The likely results of our actions can result in a crisis. From this perspective, we might usefully learn that failing to understand the real causes of our difficulties is likely to lead to repeated downstream 'blowback'. Where states are concerned, Michael Brecher, based on case studies of the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) project, suggested a different way of defining crisis as conditions are perceptions held by

18144-400: The march on Kinshasa: that the employment of Serbian mercenaries in the battle for Walikale proved that "Mobutu intended to wage real war against Rwanda." According to this logic, Rwanda's initial concerns had been to manage the security threat in eastern Zaire but it was now forced to dispose of the hostile government in Kinshasa. Whatever the case, once the advance resumed in 1997, there

18306-595: The metropole, triggering an exodus of most of the Congo's 10,000 European civil servants and leaving the administration in disarray. Engulfed by the disorder spreading throughout the country, most of the government ministries were unable to function. On 11 July 1960, Moïse Tshombe , the leader of CONAKAT, declared the Congo's southern province of Katanga independent as the State of Katanga, with Élisabethville as its capital and himself as president. The mineral-rich Katanga region had traditionally shared closer economic ties with

18468-401: The middle of May. Another AFDL group captured Lubumbashi on April 19 and moved on by air to Kinshasa. Mobutu fled Kinshasa on May 16, and the "libérateurs" entered the capital without serious resistance. The AFDL-allied Eritrean battalion had aided the rebels during the entire 1,500 km advance despite being not well equipped for the environment and lacking almost all logistical support. By

18630-457: The nation as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The new Congolese state under Kabila's rule proved to be disappointingly similar to Zaire under Mobutu. The economy remained in a state of severe disrepair and deteriorated further under Kabila's corrupt rule. He failed to improve the government, which continued to be weak and corrupt. Instead, Kabila began a vigorous centralisation campaign, bringing renewed conflict with minority groups in

18792-416: The new Rwandan state from Zaire. Kagame claimed that Rwandan agents had discovered the plans to invade Rwanda with support from Mobutu; in response, Kigali began its intervention with the intention of dismantling the refugee camps in which the génocidaires often took refuge and destroying the structure of these anti-Rwandan elements. A second goal cited by Kagame was the overthrow of Mobutu. While partially

18954-499: The newly arrived Rwandan Tutsi as well as the Banyamulenge and Banyarwanda . These attacks caused about one hundred deaths a month during the first half of 1996. Furthermore, the newly arrived militants were intent on returning to power in Rwanda and began launching attacks against the new regime in Kigali, which represented a serious security threat to the infant state. Not only was the Mobutu government incapable of controlling

19116-496: The next year, bringing large numbers of black people from outside the évolué class into the independence movement. Many blacks began to test the boundaries of the colonial system by refusing to pay taxes or abide by minor colonial regulations. The bulk of the ABAKO leadership was arrested, leaving the MNC in an advantageous position. These developments led to the white community also becoming increasingly alarmed. Some whites looked to

19278-424: The official economy was not reliable. Furthermore, the Zairian national army, Forces Armées Zaïroises (FAZ), was forced to prey upon the population for survival; Mobutu himself allegedly once asked FAZ soldiers why they needed pay when they had weapons. Mobutu's rule encountered considerable internal resistance, and given the weak central state, rebel groups could find refuge in Zaire's eastern provinces, far from

19440-542: The onset of crises is that we allow ourselves to be 'tricked' into believing that we are doing something for reasons that are false. In other words, we are doing the wrong things for the right reasons. For example, we might believe that we are solving the threats of climate change by engaging in economic trading activity that has no real impact on the climate. Mitroff and Silvers posit two reasons for these mistakes, which they classify as Type 3 (inadvertent) and Type 4 (deliberate) errors. The effect of our inability to attend to

19602-522: The original- Katanga Gendarmeries later called the Tigres , proxy groups formed from the remnants of police units exiled from Congo in the 1960s, fighting to return to their homeland. Luanda did also deploy regular troops. Angola chose to participate in the First Congo War because members of Mobutu's government were directly involved in supplying the Angolan rebel group, UNITA . It is unclear exactly how

19764-419: The other person know that the negotiator (the helper) understands their perspective. Through this, they establish trust and rapport by demonstrating empathy, understanding, and objectivity in a non-judgmental way. It is important for the negotiator to listen to verbal and non-verbal reactions of the person in need, in order to be able to label the emotion that the individual is showing. Thus, this demonstrates that

19926-568: The outbreak of the Banyamulenge Rebellion on 31 August 1996. While there was general unrest in eastern Zaire, the rebellion was probably not a grassroots movement; Uganda president Yoweri Museveni , who supported and worked closely with Rwanda in the First Congo War, later recalled that the rebellion was incited by Zairian Tutsi who had been recruited by the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA). The initial goal of

20088-417: The point by writing "Before Independence = After Independence" on a blackboard. This message was hugely unpopular among the rank and file—many of the men had expected rapid promotions and increases in pay to accompany independence. On 5 July 1960, several units mutinied against their white officers at Camp Hardy near Thysville . The insurrection spread to Léopoldville the next day and later to garrisons across

20250-476: The region to remain in their posts. Tshombe also recruited mercenaries, mainly whites from South Africa and the Rhodesias, to supplement and command Katangese troops. Although supported by the Belgians, Katanga never received formal diplomatic recognition from any country. The Katangese secession highlighted the "fundamental weakness" of the central government in Léopoldville, which had been the chief advocate of

20412-468: The retention of whites in positions of importance was widely resented. "Independence brings changes to politicians and to civilians. But for you, nothing will be changed ... none of your new masters can change the structure of an army which, throughout its history, has been the most organized, the most victorious in Africa. The politicians have lied to you." Extract from Émile Janssens ' speech to

20574-486: The revolt—Lumumba and Kasa-Vubu intervened personally at Léopoldville and Thysville and persuaded the mutineers to lay down their arms—but in most of the country the mutiny intensified. White officers and civilians were attacked, white-owned properties were looted and white women were raped. The Belgian government became deeply concerned by the situation, particularly when white civilians began entering neighbouring countries as refugees. The international press expressed shock at

20736-752: The rule of Joseph-Désiré Mobutu . Constituting a series of civil wars , the Congo Crisis was also a proxy conflict in the Cold War , in which the Soviet Union and the United States supported opposing factions. Around 100,000 people are believed to have been killed during the crisis. A nationalist movement in the Belgian Congo demanded the end of colonial rule: this led to the country's independence on 30 June 1960. Minimal preparations had been made and many issues, such as federalism , tribalism , and ethnic nationalism , remained unresolved. In

20898-427: The ruthless system of economic extraction had led to intense diplomatic pressure on Belgium to take official control of the country, which it did in 1908, creating the Belgian Congo . Belgian rule in the Congo was based around the "colonial trinity" ( trinité coloniale ) of state , missionary and private company interests. The privileging of Belgian commercial interests meant that capital sometimes flowed back into

21060-525: The secessionist states. ONUC's initial mandate, however, only covered the maintenance of law and order. Viewing the secessions as an internal political matter, Hammarskjöld refused to use UN troops to assist the central Congolese government against them; he argued that doing so would represent a loss of impartiality and breach Congolese sovereignty. Lumumba also sought the assistance of the United States government of Dwight D. Eisenhower , which refused to provide unilateral military support. Frustrated, he turned to

21222-471: The secessionists. Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba , the charismatic leader of the largest nationalist faction, reacted by calling for assistance from the Soviet Union, which promptly sent military advisers and other support. The involvement of the Soviets split the Congolese government and led to an impasse between Lumumba and President Joseph Kasa-Vubu . Mobutu, at that time Lumumba's chief military aide and

21384-498: The sending of a multinational contingent of peacekeepers to the Congo under UN command. On 14 July, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 143 , calling for total Belgian withdrawal from the Congo and their replacement with a UN-commanded force. The arrival of the United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) was initially welcomed by Lumumba and the central government who believed the UN would help suppress

21546-572: The situation. In April 1962, UN troops occupied South Kasai. On the night of 29/30 September 1962, South Kasai military commanders launched a coup d'état in Bakwanga against the Kalonjist regime. On 5 October 1962, central government troops again arrived in Bakwanga to support the mutineers and help suppress the last Kalonjist loyalists, marking the end of South Kasai's secession. Resolution 169 , issued in November 1961, called for ONUC to respond to

21708-557: The social revolution of 1959 that brought the Hutu to power in Kigali . Tutsi who emigrated to Zaire before Congolese independence in 1960 are known as Banyamulenge , meaning "from Mulenge ", and had the right to citizenship under Zairian law. Tutsi who emigrated to Zaire following independence are known as Banyarwanda , although the native locals often do not distinguish between the two, calling both Banyamulenge and considering them foreigners. After coming to power in 1965, Mobutu gave

21870-508: The stage for the Second Congo War (1998–2003) due to tensions between Kabila and his former allies. By 1996, Zaire was in a state of political and economic collapse, exacerbated by long-standing internal strife and the destabilizing effects of the 1994 Rwandan genocide , which had led to the influx of refugees and militant groups into the country. The Zairean government under Mobutu, weakened by years of dictatorship and corruption,

22032-479: The state could not survive indefinitely. On 11 December 1962, Belgian foreign minister Paul-Henri Spaak declared that the Belgian government would support the UN or the central Congolese government should they attempt to end the Katangese secession through force. On 24 December 1962, UN troops and the Katangese Gendarmerie clashed near Élisabethville and fighting broke out. After attempts to reach

22194-591: The state from the Republic of the Congo to Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was ratified in a constitutional referendum in June 1964 and Parliament was dissolved to await new elections. Kasa-Vubu appointed Tshombe, the exiled Katangese leader, as interim prime minister. Although personally capable, and supported as an anti-communist by Western powers, Tshombe was denounced by other African leaders such as King Hassan II of Morocco as an imperialist puppet for his role in

22356-463: The stress. Various coping mechanisms include: In some cases, it is difficult for an individual undergoing a crisis to adapt to the situation. As it is outside of their normal range of functioning, it is common that one endures a struggle to control emotions. This lack of control can lead to suicidal tendencies, substance abuse, trouble with the law and general avoidance of resources available for help. One such resource used to aid an individual in crisis

22518-454: The successful recovery of over 100 missionaries. The rebels founded a state, the People's Republic of the Congo ( République populaire du Congo ), with its capital at Stanleyville and Christophe Gbenye as president. The new state was supported by the Soviet Union and China, which supplied it with arms, as did various African states, notably Tanzania . It was also supported by Cuba, which sent

22680-469: The then-US ambassador to Rwanda, Robert Gribbin, with the idea of a "Greater Rwanda." This idea purports that the ancient state of Rwanda included parts of eastern Zaire that should actually belong to Rwanda. However, it appears that Rwanda never seriously attempted to annex these territories. The history of conflict in the Congo is often associated with illegal resource exploitation but, although Rwanda did benefit financially by plundering Zaire's wealth, this

22842-521: The time the Eritreans arrived at Kinshasa along the AFDL, they were exhausted, starving and ill, having suffered heavy casualties as a result. They had to be evacuated from the country by the war's end. Throughout the rebel advance, there were attempts by the international community to negotiate a settlement. However, the AFDL did not take these negotiations seriously but instead partook so as to avoid international criticism for being unwilling to attempt

23004-544: The uranium used by the U.S. nuclear programme during World War II was Congolese—led to substantial interest in the region from both the Soviet Union and the United States as the Cold War developed. An African nationalist movement developed in the Belgian Congo during the 1950s, primarily among the évolués . The movement was divided into a number of parties and groups which were broadly divided on ethnic and geographical lines and opposed to one another. The largest,

23166-597: The war was the genocide in neighbouring Rwanda in 1994, which sparked a mass exodus of refugees known as the Great Lakes refugee crisis . During the 100-day genocide, hundreds of thousands of Tutsi and sympathizers were massacred at the hands of predominantly Hutu aggressors. The genocide ended when the Hutu government in Kigali was overthrown by the Tutsi-dominated Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Of those who fled Rwanda during

23328-491: The wealth generated by the province's mining operations and to avoid sharing it with the rest of the Congo. Another major factor was what CONAKAT held to be the disintegration of law and order in the central and north-eastern Congo. Announcing Katanga's breakaway, Tshombe said "We are seceding from chaos." The major mining company in Katanga, the Union Minière du Haut Katanga (UMHK), had begun supporting CONAKAT during

23490-467: Was a civil and international military conflict that lasted from 24 October 1996 to 16 May 1997, primarily taking place in Zaire (which was renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the conflict). The war resulted in the overthrow of Zairean President Mobutu Sese Seko , who was replaced by rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila . This conflict, which also involved multiple neighboring countries, set

23652-409: Was also used for a major change in the development of a disease. By the mid- seventeenth century , it took on the figurative meaning of a "vitally important or decisive stage in the progress of anything", especially a period of uncertainty or difficulty, without necessarily having the implication of a decision-point. A crisis is often linked to the concept of psychological stress and used to suggest

23814-458: Was also very important to the rebels who also made extensive use of witchcraft to protect themselves and also demoralise their ANC opponents. As they advanced, the rebels perpetrated numerous massacres in the territory they captured in order to remove political opposition and terrorise the population. About 1,000 to 2,000 Westernized Congolese were murdered in Stanleyville alone, while the rebels initially left Whites and foreigners mostly alone. ONUC

23976-417: Was arrested. Lumumba escaped house arrest and fled eastwards towards Stanleyville where he believed he could rally support. Pursued by troops loyal to Mobutu, he was captured at Lodi on 1 December 1960 and flown back to Léopoldville with his hands bound. Despite UN appeals to Kasa-Vubu for due legal process , the Soviet Union denounced the UN as responsible for the arrest and demanded his release. A meeting of

24138-514: Was borrowed from the Latin , which in turn was borrowed from the Greek κρίσις krisis 'discrimination, decision, crisis'. The noun is derived from the verb κρίνω krinō , which means 'distinguish, choose, decide'. In English , crisis was first used in a medical context, for the time in the development of a disease when a change indicates either recovery or death, that is, a turning-point. It

24300-406: Was crushed in early 1962. Meanwhile, the UN took a more aggressive stance towards the secessionists after Hammarskjöld was killed in a plane crash in late 1961. Supported by UN troops, Léopoldville defeated secessionist movements in Katanga and South Kasai by the start of 1963. With Katanga and South Kasai back under the government's control, a reconciliatory compromise constitution was adopted and

24462-414: Was deprived of approximately 40 percent of its revenues. Disquiet about Belgium's support for the secessionist states led to calls within the United Nations (UN) to remove all Belgian troops from the country. The Secretary General of the UN, Dag Hammarskjöld , believed that the crisis would provide the organisation with a chance to demonstrate its potential as a major peacekeeping force and encouraged

24624-677: Was handed over to forces loyal to Tshombe. On 17 January 1961, Lumumba was executed by Katangese troops near Élisabethville. News of the execution, released on 13 February, provoked international outrage. The Belgian Embassy in Yugoslavia was attacked by protesters in Belgrade , and violent demonstrations occurred in London and New York . Shortly thereafter seven Lumumbists, including the first President of Orientale Province , Jean-Pierre Finant , were executed in South Kasai for "crimes against

24786-541: Was in the process of withdrawing when the rebellions started and had only 5,500 personnel, most whom were deployed in the eastern part of the country and stranded by the conflict. Straggling Western missionaries retreated to their respective embassies, which in turn requested UN assistance. A small force of peacekeepers was assembled and subsequently dispatched to the Kwilu region to retrieve fleeing missionaries. Rescue operations continued throughout March and April and resulted in

24948-401: Was re-appointed President by Mobutu in February 1961. From the coup onwards, Mobutu was able to exert considerable power in Congolese politics behind the scenes. Following Kasa-Vubu's reinstatement, there was an attempted rapprochement between the Congolese factions. Tshombe began negotiations for the end of the secession and the formation of a confederal Congo. Although a compromise agreement

25110-506: Was reached, it was prevented from taking effect as negotiations broke down amid personal animosity between Kasa-Vubu and Tshombe. An attempted reconciliation in July 1961 led to the formation of a new government, led by Cyrille Adoula , which brought together deputies from both Lumumbist and South Kasai factions but failed to bring a reconciliation with Katanga. Members of the MNC-L fled to Stanleyville where, led by Antoine Gizenga , they formed

25272-500: Was relieved two weeks early by the USS ; Kearsarge  (LHD-3) and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit . With active support from Rwanda, Uganda, and Eritrea, Kabila's AFDL was able to capture 800 x 100 km of territory along the border with Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundi by 25 December 1996. This occupation temporarily satisfied the rebels, because it gave them power in the east and allowed them to defend themselves against

25434-440: Was shared between president and prime minister in a system known as bicephalisme . Kasa-Vubu was proclaimed president, and Lumumba prime minister, of the Republic of the Congo. Despite the objections of CONAKAT and others, the constitution was largely centralist, concentrating power in the central government in Léopoldville, and did not devolve significant powers to provincial level. Despite the proclamation of independence, neither

25596-508: Was taken up by Maoist-inspired Congolese revolutionaries, including Pierre Mulele who had served in the Lumumba government. The political instability of the Congo helped to channel wider discontentment into outright revolt. Disruption in the rural Congo begun with agitation by Lumumbists, led by Mulele, among the Pende and Mbundu peoples . By the end of 1963, there was unrest in regions of

25758-568: Was the Alliance des Bakongo (ABAKO), led by Joseph Kasa-Vubu , who advocated a more radical ideology than the MNC, based around calls for immediate independence and the promotion of regional identity. ABAKO's stance was more ethnic nationalist than the MNC's; it argued that an independent Congo should be run by the Bakongo as inheritors of the pre-colonial Kingdom of the Kongo . The Confédération des Associations Tribales du Katanga (CONAKAT),

25920-474: Was the largest of the African nationalist parties, the MNC had many different factions within it that took differing stances on a number of issues. It was increasingly polarised between moderate évolués and the more radical mass membership. A radical faction headed by Iléo and Albert Kalonji split away in July 1959, but failed to induce mass defections by other MNC members. The dissident faction became known as

26082-697: Was unable to maintain control, and the army had deteriorated significantly. With Mobutu terminally ill and unable to manage his fractured government, loyalty to his regime waned. The end of the Cold War further reduced Mobutu's international support, leaving his regime politically and financially bankrupt. The war began when Rwanda invaded eastern Zaire in 1996 to target rebel groups that had sought refuge there. This invasion expanded as Uganda , Burundi , Angola , and Eritrea joined, while an anti-Mobutu coalition of Congolese rebels formed. Despite efforts to resist, Mobutu's regime quickly collapsed, with widespread violence and ethnic killings occurring throughout

26244-463: Was virtually no meaningful resistance from what was left of Mobutu's army. Kabila's forces were only held back by the dilapidated state of Zaire's infrastructure . In some areas, no real roads existed; the only means of transport were infrequently used dirt paths. The AFDL committed grave human rights violations, such as the carnage at a refugee camp of Hutu at Tingi-Tingi near Kisangani , where tens of thousands of refugees were massacred. Coming from

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