As the DRC commemorates 50 years of independence, Mwaura Kaara finds there’s little official acknowledgement of the life of Patrice Lumumba, Congo’s first and only elected prime minister, removed from office after two months and eventually assassinated. The celebration ‘should have reflected on Lumumba’s main contribution to the Congolese struggle’, writes Kaara, ‘his articulation of the idea of a united Congo, a vision that sought to build a united nations across all ethnic and tribal divisi...read more
As the DRC commemorates 50 years of independence, Mwaura Kaara finds there’s little official acknowledgement of the life of Patrice Lumumba, Congo’s first and only elected prime minister, removed from office after two months and eventually assassinated. The celebration ‘should have reflected on Lumumba’s main contribution to the Congolese struggle’, writes Kaara, ‘his articulation of the idea of a united Congo, a vision that sought to build a united nations across all ethnic and tribal divisions despite fierce European opposition.’
