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Addressing Belgium's Crimes in the Congo Free State

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Addressing Belgium's Crimes in the Congo Free State Historical Security Council Addressing Belgium's crimes in the Congo Free State Director: Mauricio Quintero Obelink Moderator: Arantxa Marin Limón INTRODUCTION The Security Council is one of the six main organs of the United Nations. Its five principle purposes are to “maintain international peace and security, to develop diplomatic relations among nations, to cooperate in solving international problems, promote respect for human rights, and to be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations” (What is the Security Council?, n.d.). The Committee is made up of 10 elected members and 5 permanent members (China, France, Russian Federation, United Kingdom, United States), all of which have veto power, which ultimately allows them to block proposed resolutions. As previously mentioned, the Security Council focuses on international matters regarding diplomatic relations, as well as the establishment of human rights protocols. For this reason, Belgium’s occupation of the greater Congo area is a topic of relevance within the committee. The Congo Free State was a large territory in Africa established by the Belgian Crown in 1885, and lasted until 1908. It was created after Leopold II commissioned European investors to explore and establish the land as European territory in order to gain international, economic; and political power. When the Belgian military gained power over the Congo territory, natives included, inhumane crimes were committed towards the inhabitants, all while under Leopold II’s supervision and approval. For this reason, King Leopold II’s actions, as well as the direct crimes committed by his army, must be held accountable in order to bring justice to the territory and its people. This specific topic of discussion is closely related to the Sustainable Development Goal of peace, justice, and strong institutions. The purpose of this goal is to “promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels” (Sustainable Development Goal 16, n.d). The committee’s main objectives for the topic of Belgium’s crimes in the Congo Free State is to achieve peaceful and unified societies while providing access to justice for all. I. HISTORY OF THE PROBLEM The Congo Free State was a former colony of Africa from 1885 to 1908. It occupied an area that almost entirely covered the Congo River basin. It was established in the 1880’s by Leopold II with his personal goal being to acquire a large area of land in Africa, ultimately exploiting it for personal wealth. The Congo Free Sate’s native inhabitants were largely abused and forced into slavery, working under extreme conditions, following Leopold II’s commands. The investors of 1 Congo Free State “made a substantial profit from rubber production at the expense of the Congolese” (Pimentel, 2019). The situation in the Congo Colony has been an ongoing issue for over 20 years, yet it started as a result of the Berlin Conference, which took place during 1884 and 1885. The outcome of the conference ultimately allowed for the atrocities seen in the African continent to be carried out. The topics discussed in the conference were all regarding territorial claims of Africa. As of now, several European nations, including Great Britain, France, Germany, and Belgium, have taken control of portions of Africa and have taken advantage of the natural resources found in their respective territory. Diamonds, rubber, gold, oil and iron are a few of the resources sought after by the previously mentioned European powers (Natural Resources In…, n.d.) In addition to mining resources, another resource that is being exported in mass amounts is latex, collected from the forests; another reason that makes african territories a wanted place for european powers (Brum, M., n.d.). During his 44 year long reign, Leopold II wanted to modernize Belgium by using imperialism like many other countries were doing (McKenna, n.d.). He acquired the area in Congo, which was ”an astonishing 76 times the size of Belgium”, by using his diplomatic powers (Stanley, 2012). He promised to bring civilization to the continent, yet created a slave plantation instead. When demand for rubber around the world increased, Leopold II took advantage of Congolese labor, as well as their land. Taking advantage of the resources present, Belgium increased its overall exports, which ultimately led to an increased wealth for the small European nation. Under Leopold II’s control, Congolese were made slaves and put under extreme inhumane conditions. The workers were forced into jungles to “slash down vines and layer their bodies with rubber latex. Later they would scrape it off their skin – often taking flesh and hair with it” (Stanley, 2012). Gendarmeries (armed authorities in Congo under Leopold II’s control) often used their 2 weapons and ammunition provided to hunt for their personal benefits. Belgian authorities worried about bullets being wasted so they demanded a hand for every bullet the soldiers used, “as proof that the killings had been done” (Thompsell, 2018). Often, gendarmes would cut Congolese’s hands off just to provide the correct bullet-body rate, when in reality the Congolese were not killed and simply exploited. Congolese workers faced physical and mental abuse from the Congo Free State administartion in all kinds of ways including looting, murder and rape. It is estimated that there were more than 10 million victims while Leopold II was in control. II. CURRENT SITUATION As a result of the aforementioned crimes, the Congolese population has been declining radically since the beginning of the Belgian establishment in 1885. Due to unprecedented violent crimes and abuse of power; birth rates have decreased, diseases have surfaced and thrived amongst the Congolese people, poverty has multiplied; and the death rate is increasing at an alarming pace. The Congo Free State is under the control of the Belgian Crown and has no chance of receiving a fair and just quality of life; the situation has not improved (Brum, M., n.d.) On account of the natural resources, european powers have not hesitated in taking control of African nations. In regards to the Congo Free State, Belgian troops in charge of controlling the Congolese population have been systematically abusing their power. The soldiers have been assigned to maintain complete control of the population, orders received by higher ranking officials. Including full cooperation, supervisors and leaders of military troops are ordering soldiers to bring the head of every victim as proof of a life taken by the soldier. To motivate soldiers, their superiors are shortening their time of service if they bring them human hands; hands that belong to the Congolese, the soldier that brings the most hands would spend shorter time in service (Brum, M., n.d.). Along with this, King Leopold II founded a military group (Force Publique) with the sole task of controlling mining areas. The group has been proven to be dangerous because it recruits men that have previous experience in military forces. Not only being conformed by people with military experience, one of the qualities that members of the group have is being white and having a history of committing violence (Thompsell, 2018). The crimes that are being committed and are known of are the following: forced labor, violence coercion, hate crimes, discrimination, and taking lives. It is estimated that just from 3 sleeping sickness, around 500,000 Congolese lost their lives. The amount of citizens that are suffering from these crimes and deseasing is unprecedented in this nation. These are all occurring without any consequences enforced by the Belgian nation and European countries involved because the perpetrators are following the orders of higher ranked individuals representing these countries (Brum, M., n.d.). III. GENERAL ACTIONS Leopold II’s reign over the Congo Free State eventually developed infamy because of the increasing amount of reports about mistreatment towards indigenous people. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, “originally published in 1899 as a three-part series in Blackwood’s Magazine based on a brief experience as a steamer captain on the Congo 12 years before” , encouraged international action against Leopold II’s actions (The Belgian Congo, n.d.). After various complaints from the general public, the British government launched an official investigation. The then British Consul at Boma (at the mouth of the Congo River), Roger Casement, was sent to investigate the Congo Free State. In 1900, he reported back to the Foreign Office writing “The root of the evil lies in the fact that the government of the Congo is above all a commercial trust, that everything else is orientated towards commercial gain…” (The Belgian Congo, n.d.). The Congo Reform Association (CRA) was created in 1904 as an aftermath of the Casement Report, named after the detailed report written by Roger Casement of the atrocities happening in the Congo Free State. The Congo Reform movement’s members included “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mark Twain, Joseph Conrad, Booker T. Washington, and Bertrand Russell” (The Belgian Congo, n.d.). Leopold offered to improve his administration, but it was decided to end his rule by international forces. No nation was willing to accept the responsibility of rebuilding the Congo Free State and was debated over two years. Belgium eventually yielded to international pressure and took over its administration on November 15, 1908. The Congo Free State became the Belgian Congo and Leopold II was successfully removed from power, yet this was no major loss for him or the companies in the Congo. Leopold II had all evidence against him of his actions in the Congo Free State destroyed, but he lost all absolute power there. However, the Congolese population “still had a Belgian colonial regime, which had become heavily paternalistic, with church, state, and private companies instructed to oversee the welfare of the inhabitants” (The Belgian Congo, n.d.).
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