Belgian King Reiterates Regrets for Colonial Past in DR Congo, Stops Short of Apology
In a speech outside the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) parliament, Philippe amplified remorse he first voiced two years ago over Belgium’s brutal colonial rule—an era that historians say saw millions die. King Philippe of Belgium, in a historic visit to DRC, said on Wednesday that his country's rule over the vast central African country had inflicted pain and humiliation through a mixture of “paternalism, discrimination, and racism.”
King Leopold II, the brother of Philippe’s great great grandfather, governed what is now the DRC as his personal property between 1885 and 1908, before it became a Belgian colony. Historians say that millions of people were killed, mutilated, or died of disease as they were forced to collect rubber under his rule. The land was also pillaged for its mineral wealth, timber, and ivory. The Belgian sovereign’s trip also comes at a time of heightened tension between Kinshasa and neighboring Rwanda over rebel activity in the conflict-torn eastern DRC.
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