MAY 2 - Atrocities in the Congo

On this day in 1885, the Congo Free State was established by a private holding group of European investors headed by Leopold II, King of Belgium. This region covered the vast majority of the Congo Basin. The Congo was a privately owned with King Leopold as it’s absolute sovereign unlike like in Belgium where he ruled by right of a constitutional monarchy. Despite its name, the people of the Free State were anything but free. Leopold extended his military control in the early 1890s. The regime, under Leopold’s unchecked power, became notorious for its treatment of the Congolese. Forced labour  was used to gather rubber, palm oil, and ivory. Beatings and lashings were used to forced villages to meet ever-increasing, often unattainable quotas, as well as to put down rebellions. Leopold’s private army, known as the Force Publique, were known for their violent punishments including cutting off the hands of the Congolese, including children. This mutilation served as a punishment and a method to further terrorize the Congolese into submission, as well as a means by which soldiers could prove they were crushing rebellious activity. It is estimated that the population of this region declined from some 20 million to just 8 million. After the truth about his brutal regime began to spread, Leopold was forced to transfer his authority in the Congo to the Belgian government. In 1908, the Congo Free State was abolished and replaced by the Belgian Congo, a colony controlled by the Belgian parliament. While this was an improvement, the Congolese were still not involved in their own legislation. It wouldn't be until 30 June 1960 when the Congo would finally gain its independence.

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