A remarkable and well-written article that is history written at its best by The American Tribune! It tells the tragic story of the CIA destroyed the Congo and made it a h*** on Earth! He uses Larry Devlin’s book Chief of Station, Congo to tell the story. Devlin’s book is very eye opening indeed. It explains that the CIA was more interested in anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism than anti-Communism. The death knell for the Congo came under Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy who both found Belgian colonial rule in the country unacceptable. Rule by the UN was somehow preferable. The UN at the time was led by far-left Swedish economist and diplomat Daj Hammarskjold. He put anti-western Indian Rajeshwar Dayal in charge of the UN’s Congo policy. This only played right into the Communist’s hands. The Belgians had done a lot of good work to bring the Congo into the 20th Century. They built roads, schools and hospitals for example. They helped the Congolese people who had before the Belgians’ arrival lived in Stone Age conditions into modern times. After the Belgian withdrawal, all h*** broke lose. Total anarchy reigned as widespread pillaging broke out, key infrastructure was destroyed, wanton rape and murder was carried out particularly of white people, and a Communist Patrice Lumumba, was installed as the nation’s dictator.
Then came the bloody Congolese Civil Wars, as Katanga tried to succeed and become independent from the Congo. During that time, Congolese generals overthrow Lumumba and installed themselves. Last came the Simba Rebellion, in which drug-addicted rebels engage in an orgy of murder, rape and wanton destruction. They murdered any villager that crossed their path, brutally raped Catholic nuns and turned what remained of Congo into an unlivable h***hole. They were only finally stopped when a brave group of South African, Belgian, French, and Rhodesian mercenaries led by Mike Hoare and Bob Denard defeated them and rescued the country. Sadly, the UN would expel them from the Congo smearing them as “racist.” With their departure, the country quickly returned to anarchy. The history of the country has been tragically characterized by communist-style state confiscation of private assets, intermittent civil war which has killed millions and a total destruction of everything the Belgians left behind. Now it’s a disaster zone of epic proportions the Chinese are struggling to rebuild.
Much of what occurred happened because the CIA and the United States pressured the Belgians into leaving and then installed first Patrice Lumumba and then when he got too chummy with the Soviet Union, they installed Mobutu Seso Seko. Seko was a socialist who implemented the process of “Zairisation.” He banned Western clothing, outlawed Christian names, nationalized Belgian mining companies, and enriched himself at his people’s expense. The CIA couldn’t care less about ensuring Africa was ruled by those who’d rule for the benefit of its native peoples. That would’ve meant supporting colonial governments like the Portuguese in Mozambique and Ian Smith’s Rhodesian Front. What the United States and the CIA should’ve done was back the Belgians to the hilt. Or the very least aiding them in maintaining their rule over the most valuable part of the country Katanga, when it succeeded from Lumumba’s Marxist h*** with Belgian support. The United States should’ve publicly recognized Katanga’s independence and sent the newborn nation massive quantities of military and humanitarian aid.
The United States should also have embraced Moise Tshombe and CONAKAT and urged other western nations, Japan, the Four Tigers, and Israel to give them their support as well. What Devlin and his colleagues failed to understand is the Belgians had been wildly successful for the most part when governing the Congo and developing it. They built incredible infrastructure like railways and roads, through dense jungles. They created beautiful cities in a land that had none prior to their arrival. Not to mention they brought economic opportunity to a country that before and after them was stuck in the economic conditions of man before the Bronze Age. But the CIA entered the picture and tore all that down. So worrying was the violence and bloodshed that followed that it led to Rhodesia’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1965. The CIA destroyed the Congo and brought the anti-western UN in with us. For example, they got rid of the Belgian nuns and priests who had done a fine job educating Congolese children and replaced them with UN teachers. But they didn’t bring in enough to replace the Belgians and most ended up leaving the Congo anyway. One teacher a Haitian, remained in the country. The local UN representative put on a dinner to welcome him. At first all went well, but things quickly went South when the teacher mentioned he was of Luba ancestry. The representative who came from the Lulua ethnic group who had long been in conflict with the Luba, became enraged and tried to strangle the teacher. The UN was forced to hide him for the night and then smuggle him out of the country to get him to safety.
This was only one of many violent and horrific incidents that happened as a result of the CIA empowering the anti-western elements in the Congo. This led to Mobutu and his Maoist like campaign to wipe any trace of western influence from the country. The Congolese people would be the ones to pay the price for all this. To this day, they live in poverty, misery and constant warfare. If Belgian rule had continued for another century as planned, Congo would still be a jewel on the African continent and the Congolese people would live in peace and prosperity. I pray for them and the Congolese nation that God will guide them to a better future! Larry Devlin’s book is a cautionary tale of how America hurts more than helps when we stick our nose into affairs we don’t understand and try to impose our ideas on a part of the world where they simply won’t work and aren’t practical. God bless Belgium for all they did in the Congo! 🇧🇪🫡
A remarkable and well-written article that is history written at its best by The American Tribune! It tells the tragic story of the CIA destroyed the Congo and made it a h*** on Earth! He uses Larry Devlin’s book Chief of Station, Congo to tell the story. Devlin’s book is very eye opening indeed. It explains that the CIA was more interested in anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism than anti-Communism. The death knell for the Congo came under Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy who both found Belgian colonial rule in the country unacceptable. Rule by the UN was somehow preferable. The UN at the time was led by far-left Swedish economist and diplomat Daj Hammarskjold. He put anti-western Indian Rajeshwar Dayal in charge of the UN’s Congo policy. This only played right into the Communist’s hands. The Belgians had done a lot of good work to bring the Congo into the 20th Century. They built roads, schools and hospitals for example. They helped the Congolese people who had before the Belgians’ arrival lived in Stone Age conditions into modern times. After the Belgian withdrawal, all h*** broke lose. Total anarchy reigned as widespread pillaging broke out, key infrastructure was destroyed, wanton rape and murder was carried out particularly of white people, and a Communist Patrice Lumumba, was installed as the nation’s dictator.
Then came the bloody Congolese Civil Wars, as Katanga tried to succeed and become independent from the Congo. During that time, Congolese generals overthrow Lumumba and installed themselves. Last came the Simba Rebellion, in which drug-addicted rebels engage in an orgy of murder, rape and wanton destruction. They murdered any villager that crossed their path, brutally raped Catholic nuns and turned what remained of Congo into an unlivable h***hole. They were only finally stopped when a brave group of South African, Belgian, French, and Rhodesian mercenaries led by Mike Hoare and Bob Denard defeated them and rescued the country. Sadly, the UN would expel them from the Congo smearing them as “racist.” With their departure, the country quickly returned to anarchy. The history of the country has been tragically characterized by communist-style state confiscation of private assets, intermittent civil war which has killed millions and a total destruction of everything the Belgians left behind. Now it’s a disaster zone of epic proportions the Chinese are struggling to rebuild.
Much of what occurred happened because the CIA and the United States pressured the Belgians into leaving and then installed first Patrice Lumumba and then when he got too chummy with the Soviet Union, they installed Mobutu Seso Seko. Seko was a socialist who implemented the process of “Zairisation.” He banned Western clothing, outlawed Christian names, nationalized Belgian mining companies, and enriched himself at his people’s expense. The CIA couldn’t care less about ensuring Africa was ruled by those who’d rule for the benefit of its native peoples. That would’ve meant supporting colonial governments like the Portuguese in Mozambique and Ian Smith’s Rhodesian Front. What the United States and the CIA should’ve done was back the Belgians to the hilt. Or the very least aiding them in maintaining their rule over the most valuable part of the country Katanga, when it succeeded from Lumumba’s Marxist h*** with Belgian support. The United States should’ve publicly recognized Katanga’s independence and sent the newborn nation massive quantities of military and humanitarian aid.
The United States should also have embraced Moise Tshombe and CONAKAT and urged other western nations, Japan, the Four Tigers, and Israel to give them their support as well. What Devlin and his colleagues failed to understand is the Belgians had been wildly successful for the most part when governing the Congo and developing it. They built incredible infrastructure like railways and roads, through dense jungles. They created beautiful cities in a land that had none prior to their arrival. Not to mention they brought economic opportunity to a country that before and after them was stuck in the economic conditions of man before the Bronze Age. But the CIA entered the picture and tore all that down. So worrying was the violence and bloodshed that followed that it led to Rhodesia’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1965. The CIA destroyed the Congo and brought the anti-western UN in with us. For example, they got rid of the Belgian nuns and priests who had done a fine job educating Congolese children and replaced them with UN teachers. But they didn’t bring in enough to replace the Belgians and most ended up leaving the Congo anyway. One teacher a Haitian, remained in the country. The local UN representative put on a dinner to welcome him. At first all went well, but things quickly went South when the teacher mentioned he was of Luba ancestry. The representative who came from the Lulua ethnic group who had long been in conflict with the Luba, became enraged and tried to strangle the teacher. The UN was forced to hide him for the night and then smuggle him out of the country to get him to safety.
This was only one of many violent and horrific incidents that happened as a result of the CIA empowering the anti-western elements in the Congo. This led to Mobutu and his Maoist like campaign to wipe any trace of western influence from the country. The Congolese people would be the ones to pay the price for all this. To this day, they live in poverty, misery and constant warfare. If Belgian rule had continued for another century as planned, Congo would still be a jewel on the African continent and the Congolese people would live in peace and prosperity. I pray for them and the Congolese nation that God will guide them to a better future! Larry Devlin’s book is a cautionary tale of how America hurts more than helps when we stick our nose into affairs we don’t understand and try to impose our ideas on a part of the world where they simply won’t work and aren’t practical. God bless Belgium for all they did in the Congo! 🇧🇪🫡
Thank you for this thoughtful comment!
Very much agree on Katanga and Tshombe
BAP should have you on as a guest