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The role of the West in the non-development of Congo
Šikulová, Eva ; Volenec, Otakar (advisor) ; Kochan, Jan (referee)
This paper describes the development of Congo since its beginnings until today and focuses on the influence of the Western world on the country. Congo was founded by the Belgian king Leopold II and became his personal colony. Leopold's regime was orientated on the expoitation of Congo's natural resources, above all rubber and ivory. The inhuman treatment of Africans caused international criticism and Leopold was forced to hand over the colony to Belgium. Under belgian rule the economic development of Congo started, even though congolese people were still considered second category citiziens. After gaining independence the country was caught in total chaos until the revolution by general Mobutu. After taking over the government, he ruled Congo for 32 years, supported by the West, and the country was systematically ruined. In 1997, during the first Congo war, Mobutu was overthrown by Laurent Kabila. One year later another war started and though it officialy ended in 2003, a regional conflict in Kivu is still going on. The motivation of armed groups is the mineral wealth of the region. Western companies are indirectly financing the conflict through importing conflict minerals.
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