Kinshasa, 8 July 2022 (TDI): Belgian Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region, Stephane Doppagne, pronounced the renewal of Belgium’s relations with its former colony; the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), following the tour of Belgian Royals.
The Belgian Royals visited the country last month. Lamenting the colonial past and realizing the importance of close cooperation, the two countries are set to enter an era of renewed relations.
🇧🇪🇨🇩 België & de #DRC: samen aan de toekomst werken
Stéphane Doppagne, onze Speciale Gezant voor de Regio van de #GroteMeren, legt uit waarom de voorbije maanden monumentaal waren voor de bilaterale betrekkingen tussen onze landen.
🔗 https://t.co/ApkpTlXRxN pic.twitter.com/Lg6klOfZTy
— 🇧🇪 Belgium MFA (@BelgiumMFA) July 5, 2022
Acknowledging Belgian Colonial Rule
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium visited the former colony at the invitation of the incumbent President of DR Congo Felix Tshisekedi.
The Belgian Special Envoy emphasized that the tour focused on restitution and acknowledging Belgian’s colonial past in DR Congo, one of the bloodiest in Africa.
In his speech in the ‘Palais du Peuple’ in Kinshasa, the seat of the Congolese parliament and senate, the Belgian King expressed regret over the Belgian rule.
He also presented an award to the last Congolese veteran of the Second World War, 100-year-old Albert Kunyuku. Thereby Belgium acknowledged the sacrifices made by the Congolese people during the two World Wars.
Moreover, King Philippe handed over a giant Congolese Suku mask, one of about 84,000 artifacts taken during the colonial era that Belgium has agreed to return.
The country had also recently returned the remains of national-revolutionary and former Prime Minister of DR Congo Lumumba.
New Areas of Cooperation
The two countries renewed cooperation based on mutual respect and equal footing. They launched a new governmental development cooperation program (2023-2027) which identified the main stakeholders as youth and women.
The two countries will also collaborate on holistic security with peace in the Eastern DR Congo being a key concern. They also aim to bolster military cooperation.
For this end, Belgium donated 1.5 million euros to the UN Human Rights Agency for DR Congo (BCNUDH) to fight against impunity.
Finally, the two countries will cooperate on the long-term development of DR Congo by working on transparency, innovation, climate change, and the environment.
