Philip, King of the Belgians is expected to visit the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from 6 to 10 March 2022, the Royal Palace announced on Wednesday 16 February. The schedule has yet to be detailed, but the King will be accompanied by his wife, Queen Matilda, the Belgian Prime Minister, the head of diplomacy and the Minister for Development Cooperation.
In early March, the DRC will welcome Sir Philip, King of the Belgians. This is the first Belgian royal visit to the DRC since Albert II, Philippe’s father, travelled to the country in 2010 for the fiftieth anniversary of the former colony’s independence. In June 2020, the king expressed his historical regret for the deep wounds inflicted on the Congolese during the Belgian colonial era. In a letter addressed to Félix Tshisekedi, President of the DRC, the King deplored the numerous acts of violence committed against the population.
A painful past
He wrote :” During the era of the independent state of Congo (from 1885 to 1908 when King Leopold II ceded the territory to the Belgian state, editor’s note) acts of violence and cruelty were committed, which still weigh on our collective memory ” ., and”the subsequent colonial period (that of the Belgian Congo from 1908 to 1960) also caused suffering and humiliation.
Thus, from 1885 to 1908, the Congo was taken as the private property of King Leopold II. The latter managed the country, which was rich in mineral deposits, as he saw fit and from Brussels. He had thus seized all the treasures of the country and forced people into exploitation and slavery. In this abuse, multiple acts of violence were committed. Among other things, many hands of workers deemed unproductive were cut off, feet were sawed off, resulting in disability and many deaths. He handed over the country to the Belgians after 1908. The latter administered it as a colony until 1960. This part of history has remained forever engraved in the memory of the Congolese. Moreover, this move by King Philipe, who has been on the Belgian throne since 2013, will comfort and heal the wounds of the past, if only a little.
Goal in sight
Kinshasa had welcomed King Philippe’s words as “a step forward” that could “boost friendly relations” between the two countries. This visit is also part of the reaffirmation of the Belgian kingdom’s loyalty to its idea of returning the thousands of Congolese art objects that were wrongfully acquired. And especially during the violence committed under the reign of Leopold II. For example, Belgium is preparing to return to the DRC a tooth of Patrice Lumumba, the Congolese hero of the anti-colonial struggle, and many other cultural heritages. It should be noted that in 2021, a ceremony to return these relics was postponed because of the Covid 19 pandemic.
