Een problematische erfenis: België en de moord op Lumumba

Abstract

A troublesome legacy: Belgium and the assassination of Lumumba Patrice Lumumba was executed in January 1961, shortly after having been ousted as the first prime minister of newly independent Congo. Almost immediately, the question arose whether, and to what extent, the Belgian authorities (including the Royal House) had been implicated in the murder. The Belgian government had been antagonistic towards the 'troublesome' nationalist Lumumba from the start. At first the 'establishment'-view dominated: Belgium was not guilty. At the most, it bore a moral responsibility for the murder. In 1999, the Belgian social scientist, De Witte, reopened this debate through his highly critical book. De Witte accused the Belgian authorities in no uncertain terms. A parliamentary inquiry, based on an extensive historic study, resulted in middle-of-the road conclusions: mistakes had been made in 1961, but this did not amount to guilt. After the inquiry the Lumumba affair disappeared from the public and political agenda once again.

Keywords

• Decolonisation
• Historiography