Drawing on recently opened archives in russia and the united states, and to a lesser extent germany and belgium, lisa namikas addresses the crisis from the perspectives. The war began in 1998 and officially ended in 2003 when a transitional government took power. The triggering events behind the congo crisis were the mutiny of the army the force publique near leopoldville on july 5 and the subsequent intervention of belgian paratroopers, ostensibly to protect the lives of belgian citizens. Africa boosters, who argue that the region has finally turned a corner and sits on the cusp of a major economic breakthrough, rarely mention the democratic republic of the congo, whose population remains poorer than it was at independence, in 1960. Covers the first and second congo wars and its continued aftermath. Second congo war news newspapers books scholar jstor february 2016 learn. American foreign policy in the congo, 19601964 ithaca, ny.
This resulted in a rwandanugandan joint invasion in 1998. The first congo war began in 1996 as rwanda grew increasingly concerned that members of rassemblement democratique pour le rwanda militias, who were carrying out crossborder raids from zaire currently known as the democratic republic of congo, were planning an invasion. In the first congo war, the support of rwanda and uganda enabled congolese rebel, laurent desirekabila, to overthrow mobutu sese sekos government. Given the substantial increase in the price of coltan between late 1999 and late 2000, a. The democratic republic of congo formerly zaire has a long history of conflict, but its recent crises can be traced to the aftermath of the 1994 rwandan genocide. Destabilization in eastern zaire resulting from the rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external factors to align against the corrupt and inept government in the capital, kinshasa. The widest interstate war in modern african history, it directly involved nine. Democratic republic of the congo the congo crisis britannica.
History of the drc the second congo war was a conflict taking place largely in the territory of democratic republic of the congo formerly zaire that began in 1998 and officially ended in 2002. Congo crisis project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Chapter 5 of william minters king solomons mines revisited. Crise congolaise was a period of political upheaval and conflict in the republic of the congo today the democratic republic of the congo between 1960 and 1965. Kasavubu had been watching the congo river as president for the last five years, during which time four prime ministers had gone floating by. Western interests and the burdened history of southern africa new york. She could be coy, she responded to flattery, she was preoccupied with her appearance, loved makeup, and was very fussy about the collar of the sweaters she wore in the winter. Score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. The crisis began almost immediately after the congo became independent from belgium and ended, unofficially, with the entire country under the rule of joseph. Congo backgrounder what in the world is going on congo. The congo, decolonization, and the cold war, 19601965.
In response to violence carried out by exiled rwandan hutu genocidaires, rwandan and ugandan forces invaded the democratic republic of congo drc in 1996. Jan 25, 2001 the countrys armed rebels have also found a base in the congo, and employment fighting for president kabila. The triggering events behind the congo crisis were the mutiny of the army the force publique near leopoldville on july 5 and the subsequent intervention of belgian paratroopers, ostensibly to protect the lives of belgian citizens adding to the confusion was a constitutional impasse that pitted the new countrys president and prime minister against each other and. The second factor of the crisis was the growing threat of the cold war in. The congolese wars took place between 1996 and 2003 both the second and first were between zairthe democratic republic of congo, rwanda and later uganda. Tentatively since its years since i read stearns, and ive only briefly looked through reyntjens. The crisis began almost immediately after the congo became independent from belgium and ended, unofficially, with the entire country under the rule of josephdesire mobutu. See more ideas about congo crisis, congo and africa. Democratic republic of the congo democratic republic of the congo the congo crisis. Mobutu sese seko, and ethnic strife between hutu and tutsi peoples were direct contributing factors to the second congo war also called the great war in africa or africas first world war because of its scope and destructiveness.
Fiction and nonfiction books set completely or at least partially in either the republic of the congo or the democratic republic of the congo. Three new books on the democratic republic of the congo. The best books on democratic republic of the congo. Prime minister lumumba, a powerful figure in the pan african movement, appealed to the united states and the united nations for. Located in westcentral africa, the congo is a country with great ethnic diversity and vast natural resources, especially immensely mineralrich land.
Nov 02, 2007 king leopolds ghost by adam hochschild 1999 hochschild struggles against the great forgetting of belgiums exploitation of the congo with this corrective history of leopold iis bloody empire. Congo crisis hardcover january 1, 1966 by joseph bayly author 4. The history of conflict in the congo is often associated with illegal resource exploitation but, although rwanda did benefit financially by plundering zaires wealth, 35 this is almost universally denied as a motivation for rwandan intervention in the first congo war. The new congo crisis had become a continentwide conflict. The burundian army preoccupied with the civil war at home, is not a major player in the congo, but the rebels, again estimated to number about 15,000, are an important component of the congolese government forces. Cornell university press, 1974 remains one of the best indepth scholarly analyses of the crisis. Patrice lumumba, just released from prison, showing his injured wrists what does it mean to have courage. Congo crisis 196065 the united nation dispatched 20,000 peacekeeping forces to the country, but it was not enough to regain order. Crise congolaise was a period of political upheaval and conflict in the republic of the congo today the democratic republic of the congo 3 between 1960 and 1965.
The democratic republic of the congo drc, the secondlargest country in africa, has been mired in conflict for decades. Estimates place the number of dead the vast majority civilian at somewhere betweeen one million and two and a half million dead in. The dependence of the congo government under the second president kabila, on foreign forces to keep it in power. The best book on the topic ive seen is reyntjens, filip, the great african war. Written as historical fiction, bell weaves actual and fictitious characters into a multifaceted story, bringing to life the republic of congo s tumultuous transition from colony to independent nation. Jun 07, 2019 international crisis group, congo at war. The decolonization of subsaharan africa from the late 1950s to the mid1970s resulted in several proxy cold war confrontations between the united states and the soviet union over the dozens of newly independent, nonaligned nations. Fifteen years after it began, the congo crisis remains under the fog of war. In addition to the analysis provided by each months feature, origins will also include images, maps, graphs and other material to complement the essay. Jan 27, 2019 in the first congo war, the support of rwanda and uganda enabled congolese rebel, laurent desirekabila, to overthrow mobutu sese sekos government.
However, a true peace has been elusive and there are continuing concerns that the conflict will flare again. The second congo war was a consequence of first war congo war. Most of us might first think of those who put their lives on the line in defense of an ideal. The first phase of the second congo war led to a stalemate in the democratic republic of the congo. The congo civil war, or congo crisis, was a complex political tumult that began just days following belgiums granting of congolese independence in 1960. Winner of the 20 choice award for outstanding academic title battleground africa traces the congo crisis from postworld war ii decolonization efforts through mobutus second coup in 1965 from a radically new vantage point.
Kabila turned on his former backers rwanda and uganda and allowed hutu armies to regroup in eastern congo. Congos children, the latest in our series of ebooks, tells their stories, accompanied by vivid photography and video and drawing on reporting by jon and kem sawyer that has appeared in pbs newshour, the washington post, the christian science monitor, truthatlas, and dowser. The people of the congo, as this book shows, have suffered cruelly throughout the past century from a particularly brutal experience of colonial ru. Second congo war 19982003 africas world war tom, im currently doing research on this war and detailed military information on the war is quite sparseas with most of the modern post colonial african wars and i heard you were in a front row position during the waru. Far and away the deadliest war of the 21st century was a conflict that had its genesis in the 20th. Despite the new government, the eastern congo continued to be an unstable war zone. Over five million people have died and millions more have been displaced in what some commentators have called africas first world war see cook, 2010. Second congo war mcgill school of computer science. List of books and articles about belgian congo online.
Een geschiedenis is a 639 page nonfiction book by david van reybrouck, first published in 2010. For an overview of the congo crisis, three books are especially recommended. A briefing on the internal and external players in the central african conflict, november 17, 1998. Jun 15, 2015 the congolese wars took place between 1996 and 2003 both the second and first were between zair the democratic republic of congo, rwanda and later uganda. The democratic republic of the congo drc, the second largest country in africa, has been mired in conflict for decades. A country of paradoxes, it is a land rich in natural resources, but its people are among the poorest in the world. Shortly after the chaotic dissolution of the belgian congo, president moise tshombe proclaimed katanga, one of the territorys wealthiest provinces which had accounted for nearly fifty per cent of congolese revenues, an independent and autonomous nation.
However, after kabila was installed as the new president, he broke ties with rwanda and uganda. Search the worlds most comprehensive index of fulltext books. In each issue of origins, an academic expert will analyze a particular current issue political, cultural, or social in a larger, deeper context. Study on the first and second congo war history essay. Nov 29, 2011 second congo war the great war of africa.
A groundbreaking history of the continent since the second world war. There is an old congo saying that if one watches the congo river long enough, the bodies of ones enemies will eventually go floating by. The second moroccan crisis or agadir crisis began when france brought troops over to the city, fez, in morocco to prevent rebellions. Democratic republic of congo profile timeline bbc news. That feeling stayed with me through the last months of the second congo war 19982003 and the subsequent lowintensity series of ongoing. Til that the second congo war was the deadliest war since wwii with 5. The second congo war was a conflict that took place largely in the territory of democratic republic of the congo formerly zaire. Africas world war is the most ambitious of several remarkable new books that reexamine the extraordinary tragedy of congo and central africa since the. A history of the civil war in congo, a truly continental disaster that has sucked in neighbors and killed millions of people over the past 12 years. This was one of the bloodiest conflicts in history second only to the 2nd world war, in comparison to the brutality and the death toll with 5. Drawing on recently opened archives in russia and the united states, and to a lesser extent germany and belgium, lisa namikas addresses the crisis from the perspectives of the two. Republic of the congo, later zaire weapons and warfare.
An analysis of ethnic violence in the second congo conflict by cindil redick. Sep 12, 20 the democratic republic of the congo, also known as the congo or the drc, is the second largest country in africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world. The war began in august 1998 as a combined rwandan and ugandan attempt to oust their former. Battleground africa traces the congo crisis from postworld war ii decolonization efforts through mobutus second coup in 1965 from a radically new vantage point.
Adding to the confusion was a constitutional impasse that pitted the. Also called africas world war, the second congo war broke out in 1998 in the democratic republic of congo, formerly zaire drc, and officially ended in 2003. The collapse of the congo and the great war of africa, publicaffairs, 2011, is also good. This book, by a lifelong authority on the congo, makes sense of the worlds least reported and least understood major war. Congo only a few days after it formally received its independence from belgium, and the return of belgian troops to the congo in the days after independence created tensions within the congolese government. It borders on angola in the southwest and west, on the atlantic ocean, cabinda an angolan exclave, and the republic of the congo in the west, on the central african republic and south sudan in the north, on uganda, rwanda, burundi. Civil war, peacekeeping and the great lakes region.
The congolese conflict and the crisis of contemporary africa, c. It is generally believed that resource control was not one of the motivating factors for the invasion of zaire by rwanda and uganda in the first congo war of 199697, but gradually the profits of mining in the eastern region became integrated in the financing of both the smaller. Africas world war, fought in congo a country the size of western europe sucks in the armies of nine states, along with a bewildering range. The second congo war in the democratic republic of the congo the congo has been the largest humanitarian crisis in the last two decades. Congo backgrounder what in the world is going on congo crisis. The rwandan genocide sparked a horrific bloodbath that swept acr. Continental contagion africa is woefully illequipped to. The congo crisis, 19601965 chapter 3 foreign intervention in. Prime minister lumumba, a powerful figure in the pan african movement, appealed to the united states and the united nations for greater assistance but was ignored. Congo and regional geopolitics, 19962006, cambridge university press, 2009. Located in westcentral africa, the congo is a country with great ethnic diversity and vast natural resources, especially immensely mineralrich. The issue resurfaces in the books final chapter, where prunier moves the.
Earlier that year in march, france said that tribes and groups were causing trouble and planning to start a rebellion in morocco. First congo war project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Democratic republic of the congo, formerly zaire zi. Although mining companies being evil was probably the leading cause of the congo crisis in the 60s, the 1st and 2nd congo wars were more about kagame and the rpf. Congo 196068 mercenary wars and soldiers of fortune. What are the best books about the belgian congo and king. It began almost immediately after the congo became independent from belgium and ended, unofficially, with the entire country under the rule of joseph. Written as historical fiction, bell weaves actual and fictitious characters into a multifaceted story, bringing to life the republic of congos tumultuous transition from colony to independent nation. Crisis in the congo illuminates the fascinating and complex situation that led to hammarskjolds fateful journey. The second level brings the 1998 angolan and zimbabwean.
They retaliated by invading the democratic republic of the congo, starting the second congo war. Jan 10, 2019 2017 december dr congo is experiencing a mega crisis, with conflict having forced 1. The rwandan genocide, the toppling and death of zairean pres. Dec 12, 20 the best books on democratic republic of the congo. The following is a report of the panel of experts on the illegal exploitation of natural resources and other forms of wealth of the democratic republic of the congo, explaining the reasoning behind rwandas stay in the drc following the rwandan genocide.
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