The Kingdom of Kongo rose in the 13th century. For centuries following its inception, Kongo wrote itself into history as one of the richest artistic regions in Africa, producing countless works inspiring awe, admiration, and fear. More than five hundred years after Kongo’s inception, part of it became designated the Congo Free State, a private holding of Belgian King Leopold II. Associate Professor Chika Okeke-Agulu of Princeton University’s Department of Art and Archaeology describes King Leopold II’s subsequent treatment of the Congo as “a symbol of the terrors of imperialism and colonialism” and that his various dramatic exploitations of the land and its people caused the Congo to be “where the idea of international human rights [was] more or less born.” In the words of African art collector Christian Sulger-Buel, “King Leopold treated the people and the land like his private property. He owned Congo the way you’d own your car.” Needless to say, decades of political strife and injustices suffered by the people of the Congo have created movements of reactionary artwork seeking to document and negotiate the darkness of Congo’s turbulent history. 

One of the largest postcolonial reactionary political artwork movements is the “Lubumbashi Movement.” The movement developed from a group of artists living and working out of the southeastern Congolese city of Lubumbashi in the 1970s. Artwork from the Lubumbashi Movement commonly depicted scenes from the 16th and 17th-century slave trade, acts of brutality by colonial masters, and more contemporary issues such as miner strikes (with Lubumbashi being the copper mining heartland of Congo) and independence. One popular subgenre within the Lubumbashi movement that particularly symbolizes the spirit of the movement is “Colonie Belge.” The subgenre consists of paintings that depict a white man (a representation of a colonial master) impeccably dressed, doing nothing except watching a black man flog another black man. As Salimata Diop, head of programs at London’s Africa Centre, said, “these artists were [clearly] not making ‘airport art’ - art for foreigners or tourists to buy. They saw themselves as artisans and made art for local people.” 

In many ways, reactionary postcolonial African art, like that of the Lubumbashi movement, signifies a newfound sense of identity that had been ripped away from Africans in colonial times. Not only are the images these postcolonial artists created striking for their raw and truthfully graphic content, but they are also remarkable for their use of color and fine lines. Due to the extreme poverty much of Africa was submerged in after decades of conflict and political strife, these artists only had access to basic primary colors and large brushes. The fact that these were able to overcome these obstacles to create artwork that would come to represent the metaphorical ghosts of the Congo (and colonial Africa as a whole––forced labor, civil war, violent repression of protests) is a testament to human resilience and the power of art forms in dark times. 

Jasmine Chen
Mr. Tommolino
Independent Study
Adelphi University

SOURCES:

https://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/africa/congo-drc-53-echoes-of-zaire-exhibition 

https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/story/idea-kongo-contemporary-art 

https://biennialfoundation.org/biennials/lubumbashi-biennale/ 

The ruthless colonial history of Belgium in the Congo is one of brutality, enslavement, and egregious violations of the human rights of African people. The Belgian King, King Philippe, visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo on June 7th, 2022 through June 13th. During the visit, the king expressed his “deepest regrets” for Belgium’s abuses by Belgium colonial forces in the Congo.

However, King Philippe did not express any remorse for the overall colonization of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Which, under early colonial rule, from 1884-1908, was the private property of King Leopold II, who named the region ‘The Congo Free-State’. In 1908 the region known as the Congo was still colonized, however, it was handed over to the Belgian government after King Leopold II’s atrocities were brought to light. But the lack of remorse in 2022 shown by the King for Belgium’s role in colonizing the Congo left many people in the international community quite perplexed, considering that Belgium led an atrocity that killed an estimated 10 million Congolese people under King Leopold II's direct colonial rule. During the peak of Belgium’s direct colonial rule over the Congo, many European powers were industrializing their countries through the exploitation and expropriation of mineral resources from the African continent. The Congo was rich in its ivory and rubber. King Leopold II saw the Congo as an opportunity for Belgium to advance beyond other European powers and spread their western doctrine throughout his new colony. And so began the brutal exploitation and enslavement of Congolese men, women, and children for ivory, rubber, and other resources King Leopold II felt were needed for industrial development.

With context to Belgium's vicious colonial, exploitative, and racist history in the Congo, the international community is justified in stating ‘regret is not enough’, in response to Phillippe of Belgium’s remarks. A Congolese opposition senator, Francine Muyumba Nkanga, tweeted, “I salute the speech by the Belgian king. However, in the face of the crimes committed by Belgium, regrets are not enough.” She continued, “We expect an apology and a promise of reparations from him. That is the price to definitively turn the page.”

Many people on-the-ground in the Congo have spoken to the fact that the Belgian king’s arrival is a “distraction”, unless he is compensating Congolese people via reparations for the years of colonialism in the Congo by Belgium rule. “Belgium must ask for forgiveness from the Congolese people but also compensate them,” said Francis Kambale, a student living in Goma,

DRC. Kambale went on to say, “Our grandparents were beaten like animals, others were killed. But also, our many minerals and cultural goods were stolen by Belgium. This visit by the Belgian king is a distraction. Congo does not benefit in any way, nor does it improve the economic conditions of the Congolese.” As Francis Kambale mentioned, many of the mineral and cultural goods were stolen by Belgium. During Philippe of Belgium’s visit, he brought back the traditional mask of the Suku people to a Congolese nation museum as an “indefinite loan.” The mask has been held for decades by Belgium.

Black Alliance for Peace’s Netfa Freeman spoke in an interview with PressTV on the issue stating, “they can’t apologize, ‘regrets’ means that they're not acknowledging any responsibility for it, they just feel regret about it.” Freeman continued by saying, “So to acknowledge it, to take responsibility, or to apologize for it comes too close to acknowledging the validity and reparations owed to Africa and to, in this case, the Congo in particular. And actually looking at the conditions of the Congo it would be acknowledging that today’s conditions are the result of Belgium's colonization.”

In condemnation of King Philippe’s supposed “regretful” apology for what happened in the Congo, it is important to note that King Philippe is a descendant of King Leopold II. So, though he may feel regret for the harm inflicted upon Congolese by his ancestors, King Philippe understands that the wealth and development Belgium sees today is a direct result of the colonization, enslavement, and plundering of the Congo. An acknowledgement or passing of legislation to order reparations be paid to Congolese people will thus challenge the legitimacy of the entire western world, forcing the west to come to grips with their own history of how they have accumulated their wealth over the past 500 years. This would be an eye-opening examination that would allow Africa to place the western world on center stage and call for an end to the imperialistic theft and plundering of Africa that continues today. Instead of strictly the Congo receiving reparations, we would be forced to look at all of Africa receiving its rightful restitution. The Belgian government’s failure to acknowledge its colonialism over the Congo is an ongoing struggle that the Congolese people hope to win via reparations from Belgium. Part of that victory would also be ensuring that the Congolese regained all its stolen artifacts from the colonial period, and so much more. If the Congolese people win, so will all of Africa!

Joshua Newman
Senior, Hampton University
Intern, FOTC