Mobutu Sese Seko
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Category
- Born in 1930
- died in 1997
- 몽갈라 주 출신 인물
- African military dictator
- Soldiers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- soldier-turned-politician
- President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Zaire
- who died of prostate cancer
- enlightened person
- Mugunghwa Grand Order
- a person who is secretive
- party representative
- retired in 1997
- 아프리카의 극우 정치
- Congo Civil War/Soldier
- person in exile
mobutuIsIt is connected here.Call of Duty series game released in 2022, abbreviated as Mobututhe contents aboutCall of Duty: Modern Warfare II documentcastPlease note.[ Expand/Collapse ]
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real name | Joseph Desiree Mobutu |
Joseph-Désiré Mobutu | |
birth | |
Dead | 1997 September 7 (aged 66) |
nationality | |
tenure | 2nd President of the Democratic Republic of Congo |
First President of the Republic of Zaire | |
religion | |
height | |
party | |
1. outline
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When he met US Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger in 1983 . |
Stealing too much to get rich overnight will get you caught.During a speech at the Football Stadium in Kinshasa on May 20, 1976
Dictator of the Democratic Republic of the Congo .
It is regarded as one of the worst dictators in African history, along with the oppression and idolization of the opposition, especially the corruption , luxury, and economic breakdown, with Jean Bethel Boccasa , Siad Bare , Idiamine , Mengistu Haile Mariam , and Francisco Masiaz Nigima . In fact, Time magazine evaluated Mobutu as a typical African dictator, and the act of national invasion using Mobutu's national power was a coined word called KLEPTOCRACY .
It is regarded as one of the worst dictators in African history, along with the oppression and idolization of the opposition, especially the corruption , luxury, and economic breakdown, with Jean Bethel Boccasa , Siad Bare , Idiamine , Mengistu Haile Mariam , and Francisco Masiaz Nigima . In fact, Time magazine evaluated Mobutu as a typical African dictator, and the act of national invasion using Mobutu's national power was a coined word called KLEPTOCRACY .
2. career
2.1. early life
Mobutu Sese Seko in 1930 October 14th He was born in Risala, Congo, a former Belgian colony, the son of a colonial administrator's cook and of Ngbandi descent. His name at birth was Joseph-Désiré Mobutu. His father died when Mobutu was only eight years old.[1] Young Mobutu had to grow up around his grandfather and uncle.
After that, Mobutu received a Belgian-style education at a Catholic missionary boarding school and became fluent in French. During his school days, Mobutu was a student who was good at both studying and sports, but was also good at pranks and is said to have even run a class newspaper. However, he was expelled in 1949 after being caught sneaking out of school to meet a woman. From 1950, he served in the colonial army as a 'punishment'. At the time, Mobutu was said to have been a soldier with such an intellectual passion that he borrowed and read any European newspapers and books he could find from Belgian officers. After that, Mobutu rose through the ranks and in 1956 he became a major in the Belgian army, the highest rank a Congolese could attain.
If you look at it up to this point, it appears that Mobutu was a collaborator with the Belgian colonial authorities . However, Mobutu, who went to Belgium in 1958 to cover the Expo, temporarily quit the military and worked as a journalist, becoming close friends with Patrice Lumumba, who was leading the Congolese independence movement , and becoming his aide.[2]
After that, Mobutu received a Belgian-style education at a Catholic missionary boarding school and became fluent in French. During his school days, Mobutu was a student who was good at both studying and sports, but was also good at pranks and is said to have even run a class newspaper. However, he was expelled in 1949 after being caught sneaking out of school to meet a woman. From 1950, he served in the colonial army as a 'punishment'. At the time, Mobutu was said to have been a soldier with such an intellectual passion that he borrowed and read any European newspapers and books he could find from Belgian officers. After that, Mobutu rose through the ranks and in 1956 he became a major in the Belgian army, the highest rank a Congolese could attain.
If you look at it up to this point, it appears that Mobutu was a collaborator with the Belgian colonial authorities . However, Mobutu, who went to Belgium in 1958 to cover the Expo, temporarily quit the military and worked as a journalist, becoming close friends with Patrice Lumumba, who was leading the Congolese independence movement , and becoming his aide.[2]
2.2. two coups
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1960 , soldier Mobutu |
After Congo gained independence from Belgium on June 30, 1960, Mobutu became Secretary of State and Chief of Staff of the Democratic Republic of Congo Army. The three leaders of Congo's independence, Joseph Kasabubu , became president, Patrice Lumumba became prime minister, and Moise Tshombe became governor of Katanga Province. However, when the Congo Crisis broke out due to the conflict between these three and the extreme political chaos caused by the intervention of foreign powers, Mobutu Sese Seko, who was in control of the military, began to have political ambitions, and on September 14, 1960, he staged a bloodless military coup, arrested Patrice Lumumba, his benefactor and friend, and sent him to Tshombe to have Lumumba executed.
Later, as the war between Kasabubu and Chombe continued, Mobutu subdued Chombe in 1963 with the UN peacekeepers. However, in the same year, Lumumba's aide, Pierre Mulele, started a Kwilu rebellion in the southwest, which escalated into the Simba rebellion in the east, and the civil war continued. In 1964, when the coalition government fell into extreme chaos, Chombe, who had fled, returned and became prime minister.
In the end, with support from the West, Mobutu staged another bloodless coup on November 24, 1965, suspended the constitution, dissolved parliament and about 50 opposition parties that existed up to that time, ousted both President Joseph Kasavubu and Tshombe, and became president himself in 1957. On May 20 , a political party called the Revolutionary People's Movement (Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution, MPR) was established and a one-party dictatorship was established. As a result, Mobutu defeated the Simba rebellion in the same year and became the final victor of the civil war in which Che Guevara famously participated.
Later, as the war between Kasabubu and Chombe continued, Mobutu subdued Chombe in 1963 with the UN peacekeepers. However, in the same year, Lumumba's aide, Pierre Mulele, started a Kwilu rebellion in the southwest, which escalated into the Simba rebellion in the east, and the civil war continued. In 1964, when the coalition government fell into extreme chaos, Chombe, who had fled, returned and became prime minister.
In the end, with support from the West, Mobutu staged another bloodless coup on November 24, 1965, suspended the constitution, dissolved parliament and about 50 opposition parties that existed up to that time, ousted both President Joseph Kasavubu and Tshombe, and became president himself in 1957. On May 20 , a political party called the Revolutionary People's Movement (Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution, MPR) was established and a one-party dictatorship was established. As a result, Mobutu defeated the Simba rebellion in the same year and became the final victor of the civil war in which Che Guevara famously participated.
2.3. Dictatorship
Mobutu, who had fully seized power, wielded unbridled dictatorial power to stabilize his regime. On May 30, 1966, he handed over three former ministers and one former prime minister to a military trial on charges of conspiring in a coup d'état, and then executed them in public places. In addition to being hanged in front of 50,000 people, all universities were closed for a year after an anti-government protest by students was suppressed with gunfire in 1969. It is said that only one union of workers (UNTZA) was allowed.
In 1967, Mobutu had difficulties with the rebellion of the Katanga rebels and white mercenaries incorporated into the Congolese army, which supported Chombe, but the rebellion in Katanga state was completely suppressed that year, and the rebel leaders defected to Angola . Chombe was abducted by the French intelligence agency in Spain, the place of exile, and died while imprisoned in Algeria.
1966 On October 26, Mobutu abolished the position of prime minister. The multi-party system was also banned, completing the dictatorship of one person per party. Around this time, Laurent Desiree Kabila , who followed Patrice Lumumba and Pierre Mulele, founded the People's Revolutionary Party (PRP), a Marxist political party , in Kivu, a mountainous region in the east, and absorbed former Simba rebels to increase its power and raise funds through gold mining and ivory trade. Meanwhile, to strengthen his power, Mobutu nationalized companies and industries, including Katanga's copper mines, and completely outlawed all political parties except the MPR.
Mobutu, who had completely seized power, ran as a sole candidate in the presidential election held around October and November 1970 and was elected president, despite constant threats from anti-regime forces and rebels. At that time, the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Congo allowed the existence of two political parties, but only the ruling party could nominate a presidential candidate.
This election, which was held by open vote, was held in a way that 'if you support Mobutu, you choose green paper, and if you oppose Mobutu, you choose red paper.' At this time, the green paper was considered to have chosen 'hope', and the red paper was considered to have chosen 'confusion'. According to official statistics on the results of this election, 10,131,669 votes were in favor of Mobutu, and only 157 votes were against Mobutu, and Mobutu became president with an overwhelming vote rate of 99.9985% , similar to François Duvalier . Of course, this election was clearly fraudulent . In fact, it is said that the number of votes in this election was more than 30,000 more than the actual number of voters. And for the National Assembly election held on November 14-15, 1970, only the list of candidates belonging to the MPR was provided, resulting in a 99.26% success rate.[3] was elected with an approval rating of .
On October 27, 1971, Mobutu changed the name of the Congo Democratic Republic to Zaire , and the names and city names of each country, including the capital, also changed to African name. Previously, the name of the capital, which was Leopoldville, was changed to Kinshasa. In January 1972, he was renamed Mobutu Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Banga in Mobutu Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Banga in January 1972, and he continued to conquer by leaving a fire for each footsteps passing by superhuman patience and indomitable will It is called Almighty Warrior.
Meanwhile, around this time, the province of Katanga was also renamed Shaba Province, all citizens of Zaire had to change their names to African names, and priests caught baptizing Zaire's newborns with European names were sentenced to five years in prison. Western-style clothing was also banned because it was judged to be a symbol of the colonial era, and the people of Zaire were forced to wear only the civilian uniforms that Mobutu had designed himself, in the style of China, Mobutu's favorite country . Christmas was also moved from December to June as a 'real' date, and cultures such as food, clothing, and dance had to be compulsorily recreated in African traditions. Mobutu is said to have firmly believed that this 'authenticity campaign' would unite a nation divided by colonial and tribal divisions.
In 1974, MPR became the only legitimate political party in name and reality, and Zaire became a one-party state. Mobutu was appointed, and all sovereignty was concentrated in Mobutu. Afterwards, Mobutu ran as a sole candidate for the presidential election in 1977 and 1984, and was elected with a clearly lower (?) 98.2%/99.16% than before.
Those who opposed Mobutu, who had become a de facto 'president for life', were arrested without warrants even though no charges were applied, detained in as many as 220 camps without trial, tortured, or suddenly disappeared. In addition, the camp where prisoners were housed was so crowded that more than 100 people had to use one bathroom.[4] Sanitation was poor, and prisoners starving to death were common as they were not provided with food or water. There have been reports of imprisoned women being raped by prison guards, and even children under the age of five being detained in camps. Mobutu even killed his political opponents by putting them on helicopters without trial and dropping them alive into the Congo river and lakes.
On February 3, 1978, Mobutu arrested 64 officers and 24 civilians, claiming that they had 'discovered' a conspiracy against him , and sentenced 18 defendants to death in a trial held from February 5 to March 16. A total of 13 people, including 8 soldiers and 5 civilians, were executed by firing squad on the day of the death sentence . Beyond this, Mobutu mobilized the Zaire army and massacred thousands of civilians in retaliation against the rebels who had spread rampant in Zaire. #
The press oppression was also strong, and it was common to be detained by the military, even by the soldiers who sell newspapers beyond journalists and editors. It was detained for 11 days. Thus, it was impossible to write a criticism of Mobutu. Because of this tyranny, the people were feared and not called the real name of the Mobutu, or were called 'Mo', and even rumored to drink people's blood .
In March 1976, when Mobutu took his family to Switzerland, he could not find a way to escape the economic and political crisis of the state, and in 1977, Mobutu was supported by Angola, and when Katanga rebels attacked Shaba, they requested military support to France. In 1979, he put a Jaille into a foreign country for the purpose of suppressing the anti -tablet protests that took place twice in the Central African Empire at the demand of Bocasa I, the emperor of the central African Empire. They, along with the guards of Bocasa, were ruthlessly entered by the protesters, and they died of two protesters and killed more than 500 people.
In addition, Mobutu used Zaire's geopolitical environment with nine countries to intervene in conflicts from all over Africa, including Chad, Congo, Uganda, and Sudan, and Mobutu allows France to use it as a platform for the intervention and secret operations throughout the central Africa and southern Africa. Economic aid and political support from the United States.
Mobutu also continuously reorganized the cabinet without any regard for the abilities of ministers in order to eliminate people who were a threat to him. It is said that he carried out as many as 60 cabinet reshuffles in less than 32 years from November 1965 to April 1997 . Taking into account corruption, which will be discussed later, an environment has been created in advance that makes it unnecessary to run the country for the purpose of collapsing the country .
In 1967, Mobutu had difficulties with the rebellion of the Katanga rebels and white mercenaries incorporated into the Congolese army, which supported Chombe, but the rebellion in Katanga state was completely suppressed that year, and the rebel leaders defected to Angola . Chombe was abducted by the French intelligence agency in Spain, the place of exile, and died while imprisoned in Algeria.
1966 On October 26, Mobutu abolished the position of prime minister. The multi-party system was also banned, completing the dictatorship of one person per party. Around this time, Laurent Desiree Kabila , who followed Patrice Lumumba and Pierre Mulele, founded the People's Revolutionary Party (PRP), a Marxist political party , in Kivu, a mountainous region in the east, and absorbed former Simba rebels to increase its power and raise funds through gold mining and ivory trade. Meanwhile, to strengthen his power, Mobutu nationalized companies and industries, including Katanga's copper mines, and completely outlawed all political parties except the MPR.
Mobutu, who had completely seized power, ran as a sole candidate in the presidential election held around October and November 1970 and was elected president, despite constant threats from anti-regime forces and rebels. At that time, the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Congo allowed the existence of two political parties, but only the ruling party could nominate a presidential candidate.
This election, which was held by open vote, was held in a way that 'if you support Mobutu, you choose green paper, and if you oppose Mobutu, you choose red paper.' At this time, the green paper was considered to have chosen 'hope', and the red paper was considered to have chosen 'confusion'. According to official statistics on the results of this election, 10,131,669 votes were in favor of Mobutu, and only 157 votes were against Mobutu, and Mobutu became president with an overwhelming vote rate of 99.9985% , similar to François Duvalier . Of course, this election was clearly fraudulent . In fact, it is said that the number of votes in this election was more than 30,000 more than the actual number of voters. And for the National Assembly election held on November 14-15, 1970, only the list of candidates belonging to the MPR was provided, resulting in a 99.26% success rate.[3] was elected with an approval rating of .
On October 27, 1971, Mobutu changed the name of the Congo Democratic Republic to Zaire , and the names and city names of each country, including the capital, also changed to African name. Previously, the name of the capital, which was Leopoldville, was changed to Kinshasa. In January 1972, he was renamed Mobutu Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Banga in Mobutu Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Banga in January 1972, and he continued to conquer by leaving a fire for each footsteps passing by superhuman patience and indomitable will It is called Almighty Warrior.
Meanwhile, around this time, the province of Katanga was also renamed Shaba Province, all citizens of Zaire had to change their names to African names, and priests caught baptizing Zaire's newborns with European names were sentenced to five years in prison. Western-style clothing was also banned because it was judged to be a symbol of the colonial era, and the people of Zaire were forced to wear only the civilian uniforms that Mobutu had designed himself, in the style of China, Mobutu's favorite country . Christmas was also moved from December to June as a 'real' date, and cultures such as food, clothing, and dance had to be compulsorily recreated in African traditions. Mobutu is said to have firmly believed that this 'authenticity campaign' would unite a nation divided by colonial and tribal divisions.
In 1974, MPR became the only legitimate political party in name and reality, and Zaire became a one-party state. Mobutu was appointed, and all sovereignty was concentrated in Mobutu. Afterwards, Mobutu ran as a sole candidate for the presidential election in 1977 and 1984, and was elected with a clearly lower (?) 98.2%/99.16% than before.
Those who opposed Mobutu, who had become a de facto 'president for life', were arrested without warrants even though no charges were applied, detained in as many as 220 camps without trial, tortured, or suddenly disappeared. In addition, the camp where prisoners were housed was so crowded that more than 100 people had to use one bathroom.[4] Sanitation was poor, and prisoners starving to death were common as they were not provided with food or water. There have been reports of imprisoned women being raped by prison guards, and even children under the age of five being detained in camps. Mobutu even killed his political opponents by putting them on helicopters without trial and dropping them alive into the Congo river and lakes.
On February 3, 1978, Mobutu arrested 64 officers and 24 civilians, claiming that they had 'discovered' a conspiracy against him , and sentenced 18 defendants to death in a trial held from February 5 to March 16. A total of 13 people, including 8 soldiers and 5 civilians, were executed by firing squad on the day of the death sentence . Beyond this, Mobutu mobilized the Zaire army and massacred thousands of civilians in retaliation against the rebels who had spread rampant in Zaire. #
The press oppression was also strong, and it was common to be detained by the military, even by the soldiers who sell newspapers beyond journalists and editors. It was detained for 11 days. Thus, it was impossible to write a criticism of Mobutu. Because of this tyranny, the people were feared and not called the real name of the Mobutu, or were called 'Mo', and even rumored to drink people's blood .
In March 1976, when Mobutu took his family to Switzerland, he could not find a way to escape the economic and political crisis of the state, and in 1977, Mobutu was supported by Angola, and when Katanga rebels attacked Shaba, they requested military support to France. In 1979, he put a Jaille into a foreign country for the purpose of suppressing the anti -tablet protests that took place twice in the Central African Empire at the demand of Bocasa I, the emperor of the central African Empire. They, along with the guards of Bocasa, were ruthlessly entered by the protesters, and they died of two protesters and killed more than 500 people.
In addition, Mobutu used Zaire's geopolitical environment with nine countries to intervene in conflicts from all over Africa, including Chad, Congo, Uganda, and Sudan, and Mobutu allows France to use it as a platform for the intervention and secret operations throughout the central Africa and southern Africa. Economic aid and political support from the United States.
Mobutu also continuously reorganized the cabinet without any regard for the abilities of ministers in order to eliminate people who were a threat to him. It is said that he carried out as many as 60 cabinet reshuffles in less than 32 years from November 1965 to April 1997 . Taking into account corruption, which will be discussed later, an environment has been created in advance that makes it unnecessary to run the country for the purpose of collapsing the country .
2.3.1. idolization
The beginning of a Zaire TV evening news from the 70s depicting Mobutu as a god.[5]
Mobutu, who visited North Korea in December 1974, met Kim Il- sung twice and was greatly impressed . To some extent, Mobutu's portrait could be seen on the front of every currency, every public place, and on the lapel pin of government officials.
In fact, Mobutu's portrait was printed on the front page of every publication in Zaire at the time, Mobutu's portrait hung in many homes, many citizens wore clothes with Mobutu's image on them, and various titles such as "Father of the Fatherland", "Messiah", "Leader of the Revolution", "helmsman", "founder", "savior of the people" and "best fighter" were given to only one person, Mobutu Sese Seko. existed, and even passed a law so that the evening news on TV in Zaire would literally begin with an image of Mobutu rising like the sun from behind a cloud or descending through a cloud in the sky. It is said that children in Zaire at the time saw this and thought Mobutu was like a god. Testimony from a broadcaster at the time: Of course, Mobutu's mother, who was originally a hotel cleaner, was compared to the Virgin Mary .
Moreover, since 1975, Zaire's media has been banned from mentioning anyone other than Mobutu, and others can only mention the positions they hold. To put it simply, the Zaire media at the time could only write articles like , ‘His Excellency Mobutu Sese Seko, the father of the country, gave such-and-such instructions to the Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Interior also listened to them.’ Zaire News praising Mobutu in the late 80s[6]
In addition, the idolization of the Mobutu was also made in the school, and elementary school students had to dance in the morning, and the students of Zaire had to recite the word ' one party, one country, one father , Mobutu'. In addition, the name of the Mobutu was written in the uppercase in all the presidential press releases , and even when the Mobutu killed the lion with bare hands at the age of seven years old, the bullets and spears were bounced in the chest, or the ebony wand in the official stone statue had the power of magic and was too heavy. There was also a formal rumor about his 'supernatural talent', such as unparalleled and only eight people could only lift it together. At this point, the level of idolizing leaders is no different from North Korea .[7]
2.4. Corruption and economic collapse
Mobutu commands one of us to go to the bank and find $ 1 million. Then we told you to go to the broker and get $ 5 million. The broker then withdraws $ 10 million as the authority of Mobutu. Mobutu takes $ 1 million and we have the rest.witness' testimony
It was Mobutu's most famous evil deed, and a separate term, ' kleptocracy ', was coined to express Mobutu's corruption . In fact, Mobutu ruined the country's economy by amassing billions of dollars by misappropriating the national treasury and the country's abundant natural resources, as well as aid received from abroad .
In particular, the fact that Mobutu destroyed the country through corruption alone, without war or civil war, and that although there were many dictators who were crueler to their political opponents than Mobutu, there were very few dictators who ruined the country as clearly as Mobutu, which explains how great his corruption was. All I can say is that his economic capabilities are comparable to that of Robert Mugabe, who is infamous for his Zimbabwe dollar . Mobutu is more than just a leader who ruined the economy due to incompetence and mismanagement, he is a leader whose sole goal of running a state is literally luxury itself.[8] For his own luxury only It is no exaggeration to say that he was a leader who deliberately plundered and destroyed his homeland.
The method of obtaining urgent money was also completely different from other types of corruption. Unlike ordinary corruption that takes place in secret, Mobutu boldly embezzled the national treasury by simply calling the Central Bank of Zaire and telling them that he needed the money. In other words, it was not at the level of secretly exchanging bribes, and officially the national treasury was no different from Mobutu's private treasury.[9] Once a month, several military trucks went to Mobutu from Zaire's central bank loaded with banknotes ranging from $1.5 million to $10 million, officially packaged as "presidential subsidies." On February 22, 1993, Time magazine said of Zaire's central bank: "Zaire's central monetary authority, which Mobutu had previously treated as his personal piggy bank, is virtually bankrupt." He described it wittily.
It is said that Mobutu had already embezzled 60% of the national budget of that year since 1970, and hid the wealth he had amassed in Switzerland and Belgium. In 1993, Mobutu's overseas assets were estimated at about 7 billion, or 70% of Zaire's foreign debt. It is said that his personal fortune left behind at the time of his death was 5 to 6 billion dollars.
In 1997, the public debt of the Democratic Republic of Congo was said to have amounted to $12.5-14.5 billion, and since Mobutu's personal wealth was a large amount comparable to half of the national debt, there was even a saying that 'Mobutu's personal assets were equal to the external debt of the Republic of Zaire.' For reference, as of 1978, when GDP was the highest under Mobutu, Zaire's GDP was about $15.37 billion, and as of 1997, when Mobutu died, Zaire's GDP was only $6.09 billion . In this way, Mobutu showed an unprecedented record of corruption, embezzling money equivalent to the GDP of the country he ruled, so it was even more strange that a new word was not created.
And as mentioned above, because the cabinet term was very short, the ministers tried to gain as much as possible during their short term, and naturally, corruption became rampant in the country. And Mobutu said, “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.” He bribed his political opponents to turn them into his supporters, and promoted corruption by arresting and torturing government dissidents and then forgiving them and rewarding them to build supporters. At the time, it was reported that Zaire's high-ranking officials had embezzled approximately $30 billion.
Starting in 1973, Mobutu suddenly implemented a policy of ‘Zaireization’, nationalizing all companies. The program expropriated foreign-owned farms, factories, and businesses, from Belgian-owned businesses that had remained since colonial times to Greek, Jewish, and Pakistani merchants who had dominated much of the country's small-scale commerce since colonial times. In a speech on November 30, 1973, Mobutu described this policy as “a decisive turning point in our history” and “Zaire has become the most severely exploited country in the world to date.” He emphasized the need for this policy.
This policy was initially welcomed by the public. Mobutu handed over these confiscated companies to his relatives and supporters.[10] He treated state-owned enterprises as if they were personal property and even embezzled a portion of foreign aid, which amounted to $331 million annually. Moreover, the Zairians had little prior experience with the projects they inherited through the ‘Zaireization’ policy. So, in order to solve the management difficulties, they quickly lured foreigners back to run the business in their place, but in the end, the Zaireization policy ended in a huge failure.
Since then, even though the infrastructure of the whole country has collapsed, such as the country's infrastructure, agriculture, and transportation system, Mobutu has since been able to defeat the challenges against their regimes, such as coup prayers and external invasion with the support of the Western powers.
Mobutu has made him the most aid of the United States among the sub -Saharan Sahara, the largest American aid in the south of the South African country. The West thought that Mobutu was a bulwark that defended Mobutu from communism in Africa during the Cold War, and in this way, in the period of Jimmy Carter, about half of the total aid received by the sub -Saharan African countries .[11]
Moreover, despite knowing what happened to the enormous amount of aid given to Zaire, the Western world tolerated and supported Mobutu's corruption, viewing him as 'an important bulwark preventing the Soviet Union from expanding its influence in Africa'. Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. (1924-2010), the U.S. Secretary of State during the Ronald Reagan era, rhetorically asked in a private conversation, "If not Mobutu, then who?" He trusted Mobutu enough to ask, and secret operations against communist guerrillas in Angola and the supply of weapons to anti-communist guerrillas were concentrated at the base in Kinshasa. In 1982, one of the IMF's senior staff members prepared a report on massive corruption and embezzlement at the highest levels of the Zaire government, but his superiors withheld his report.
Although there were times when the economy grew to some extent at the beginning of his term,[12] , this remained at a short-term level, and the economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was in a recession as copper prices fell, inflation rates and national debt rose, and a massive currency devaluation occurred. For example, as of 1975, Zaire's national debt was close to $887 million, and in 1977, the fiscal deficit was close to 32% of the national budget. And as of 1983, Zaire's national debt was $5 billion, about six times the amount in 1975, and 80% of that debt was said to be owed to the West, such as the World Bank and the IMF .
As mentioned above, although Zaire has received continuous and abundant support from many countries around the world and the IMF, its economic growth rate has fallen below the population growth rate, and Zaire's infrastructure has virtually collapsed.[13] Unemployment rate was 80% , infant mortality rate was 50% , wages had fallen to 1/10th of pre-independence levels, and even as of 1995, the TV penetration rate was the lowest in the world, per 1,000 people.[14] It was 0.5 units. Even taking into account that Zaire's birth rate at the time was 6.7 and that most parts of Africa preferred large families , this means that the TV penetration rate per household was below 0.5% in the 1990s ![15][16] source
And the salary of many public service workers has been unpaid for several months, and only soldiers in the Mobutu were the groups that were regularly paid. The fraud of civil servants was so popular that the word 'civil servants were pretending to work and the nation's salary'. Soldiers suffered from lived enough to plunder even civilians living in poor areas of their homeland.[17] In the rest of the capital , women were not able to leave home at night.
Zaire's disorder was serious enough to hear the parable of the second Bosnia , another Somalia . How severe the corruption of Mobutu was, at the end of his term, he could not even pay a salary to soldiers who were the support of Mobutu. And this was an important cause of soldiers betraying Mobutu. Moreover, when the Cold War was closed in the early 1990s, there was no reason to defend Mobutu, and the World Bank and IMF drastically reduced their support for Zaire and completely cut off.
In addition, in the late 1980s, at the end of his administration, as prices rose, he tried to prevent this by implementing a price control policy. However, the policy failed and hyperinflation occurred. The exchange rate per dollar was 50 Zaire in 1985 , but rose to 60 Zaire in 1986. Just five years later, in 1990 , it jumped to 719 Zaire, in 1991 to 15,300 Zaire, in early 1992 to 114,291 Zaire, and in December of the same year to 1.99 million Zaire. In January 1993, to appease soldiers who were dissatisfied with unpaid wages,[18] Up to 5 million Zaire banknotes were issued.[19] The soldiers who received this were so angry that they plundered the capital on January 28th.[20] , in the process, at least 1,300 foreigners were evacuated and countless others died in the chaos. Among the dead were Philippe Bernard (1931-93, French ambassador to Zaire);[21] There was also widespread rape by the military.[22] , Mobutu's special forces took advantage of this chaos to participate in the riots, not to mention the regular troops.[23] They also attacked newspapers, churches, and politicians who opposed the regime. #
In the end, the Zaire government implemented currency reform on October 1, 1993, with an exchange rate of 3 million Zaire = 1 Nouvozaire. However, as the exchange rate per dollar continued to fall, the final 1 million Nouvozaire banknotes were issued.[24] Looking at the 1993 exchange rate, in March it was 2.529 million Zaire per dollar, in October it was 8 million Zaire per dollar, and in December it was a whopping 110 million Zaire per dollar.
Inflation rate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by year As you can see, from 1972, after the founding of Zaire, until 2003, the inflation rate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo always exceeded double digits.[25] , temporarily recorded at 101%/104% in 1979/1989. It recorded 2,154.4% in 1991, 4,129.2% in 1992, 1,986.9% in 1993, and 23,773.1% in 1994, and from 1995 to 2001, except for 1998, immediately after the fall of Zaire, the inflation rate was always in the triple digits.
And as the saying goes, “When the water above is clear, the water below is also clear,” the corruption of the upper class was so extreme that Zaire’s civilians were also tainted by corruption. Even the police in Zaire were stationed on every street, pointing guns at people who tried to go to other areas and forcing them to pay bribes, and only if those people paid bribes would they allow them to move to other areas.[26] It is said that there were even cases where women and children returning from the outskirts of the city were held hostage for ransom. # And as of 1997, when the First Congo War was in progress, it was said that being able to eat only porridge once a day in a small three-room house was considered a good life in the capital . Even the capital's economy was in such ruin, it was obvious what the situation would be like in the provinces. # Naturally, malnutrition was rampant, and in 1993, more than 100 children under the age of five died a month at a feeding center in Kinsasha supported by Doctors Without Borders.[27] It is said that most of the more than 5,000 malnourished children cared for by Doctors Without Borders were on the verge of death. #
2.4.1. catastrophic outcome
I disagree with the opinion that African leaders are irresponsible for national development, wasting available capital, and keeping money in foreign bank accounts.
Due to the situation of Mobutu, the total GDP of the Congo Democratic Republic was $ 40.44 billion in 1965, when Mobutu took office , but in 1997 , when Mobutu resigned, it grew 1.5 times in 32 years. At first glance, the Jaire's economy did not seem to have fallen much, but that is, the country, which had received the highest level of African countries, recorded less than 1.4% . And for 32 years he would take power, Zay recorded negative growth 14 times, and in particular, the growth rate of less than -3% was recorded nine times. In other words, the economic growth rate was less than 3%, which was more than 3% .
At the same time, Zaire's GDP per capita fell from $232 (1965) to $136 (1997), or about 58.6% of the previous level, but in the early years of his administration, it always recorded positive growth except for 1967, 1970, and 1976. It peaked at $614.53 in 1978 , but has always recorded negative growth since then, except for six years. In particular, the plunge from 1982 ($483.77) to 1984 ($262.98) and from 1993 ($270.49) to 1994 ($140.21) were particularly fatal.
In the end, Zaire, which was one of the world's 20 poorest countries in the early 1990s, became the world's worst poor country with a GDP per capita of $96.3 in 1999, two years after Mobutu left office. Taking exchange rate fluctuations into account, Mobutu's economic report card is even more dismal: Zaire's overall GDP over the past 32 years has fallen to 29.4% of its previous level.[29] , per capita GDP has fallen to the previous level of 11.4%.[30]
Even as of 1995, when Zaire's per capita GDP reached its lowest point during Mobutu's lifetime, Zaire's per capita GDP was only $130.38, which is equivalent to about $261.02 at the 2023 exchange rate. Compared to the highest point reached in 1978, it has fallen by 21.2% in 17 years, and taking exchange rate fluctuations into account, it has fallen to 9.1%.
For reference, comparing the economic growth of the Republic of Korea, one of many countries that achieved rapid growth at the time, it is easier to guess how incompetent and corrupt a ruler Mobutu was . (1997), it grew by about 114 times the previous one, and total GDP also grew about 182.7 times from $3.12 billion (1965) to $570 billion (1997), and the average economic growth rate during this period was about 17.7%. For reference, if you calculate Korea's economic growth after converting all of Korea's GDP indicators at the 2023 exchange rate at the time, the total GDP has grown 35.9 times before, and GDP per capita has grown 22.3 times before.
Later, during the Robert Mugabe administration , Zimbabwe 's GDP per capita plummeted to 63% in just 7 years from 2001 to 2008, but Zimbabwe's economic difficulties at the time were similar to those of the colonial era.[31] Considering that there was also the impact of the Western economic sanctions that have continued since 2002, Mobutu's ability to show the above record in a country with abundant natural resources and ample support from the West can only be described as amazing and reaching the level of superpower.[32] Of course, as mentioned above, foreign support stopped when the Cold War ended.
However, Zaire's record of economic collapse during the Mobutu period was also greatly affected by rapid exchange rate fluctuations. From 1971 to 1976, the exchange rate of Zaire was fixed at '1 dollar = 2 Zaire', and from 1976 to October 31, 1978, 1 Zaire was equivalent to 1 Special Drawing Right (SDR).[33] In less than a month until November 27, 1978 , it was devalued to '1 Zaire = 0.7614 SDR', on January 1, 1979, 1 Zaire (hereinafter 1 Zaire is omitted) was devalued to 0.5 SDR, and on August 24 of the same year, it was devalued to 0.375 SDR. In addition, the exchange rate fell to 1/6 in less than three years, to 0.2625 SDR on February 22, 1980, and 0.1575 SDR on June 19, 1981, and as much as 1 Zaire on September 9, 1983 . = 0.035425 SDR, with the exchange rate completely plummeting to less than 4% . And as mentioned above, in the late 1980s and 1990s, there was an enormous short-term hyperinflation comparable to that of Zimbabwe , so it is safe to say that the 1994 crash was also an aftereffect of the 1993 hyperinflation.[34]
For reference, according to the 2004 Global Corruption Report, Mobutu Sese Seko was investigated for embezzling $5 billion in 2004, earning the title of 'the world's third most corrupt leader'.[35]
2.5. extravagance
Mobutu, who ruled the country in this way, not only owns a personal gold mine, but also owns 11 palaces in Zaire alone, luxury yachts, and Mercedes-Benz cars for transportation between villas, as well as purchasing villas in Switzerland, France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Senegal, and Brazil.[36] He accumulated a lot of wealth, and according to an article in the Washington Post on May 26, 1997 , the total value of Mobutu's foreign real estate was said to be between $40 and $60 million. #
In particular, his most famous purchasing is a 25 -acre with a pink and white marble light at $ 5.2 million in the famous French resort destination, a swimming pool with one in the interior and outdoor, a gold -plated bathroom, and a helicopter landing area. There was Villa Del Mare, which was bought by Mobutu from Saudi Arabia in 1986, originally owned by former Fiat Chairman Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (1921 ~ 2003), and was once near the villa near the villa. There was a summer villa of Boduin .
And when I bought a $ 5.2 million villa on the Riviera coast, Mobutu asked if it would pay the dollar to the dollar after the contract, which was about 39 times that the difference was huge, but Mobutu didn't care at all. He also bought 8 million Swiss Francs (SFR) villas near Legman, Switzerland in the 1970s, and regularly went to Switzerland and stayed in France after prostate cancer surgery in Switzerland. In addition, the luxury yacht called 'Kamanyola' purchased by Mobutu in the late 1980s is said to be equipped with a banquet hall that can accommodate 100 guests, 60 rooms, two VIP rooms, and even a beauty salon. Camaguna's real figure
Mobutu's diet is also said to be extremely luxurious, one of the most luxurious among dictators.[38] When he celebrated his 55th birthday in 1985 at his villa in his hometown of Gbadolite, Mobutu had Frenchman Gaston Lenotre, considered the world's best pastry chef, make a 'large decorated cake topped with white cream' and had it transported on the Concorde.[39] In 1979, for a special event, he invited four of France's best chefs, including Paul Bocuse and Gaston Lenotre, to a party on his yacht. According to a New York Times reporter who visited the place in 1988, 'waiters in uniform served grilled quail on Limoges porcelain and poured Loire Valley wine appropriately chilled in the equatorial heat.' #
Mobutu liked traditional local foods such as nutrition, fish and eel, and ate food on a gold -filled ceramic plate, and had one of the world's best wine storage stores with 15,000 bottles of wine in the villa while drinking champagne in pink laurent ferry in the morning, and the best of the grapes of French vineyards. He drank vintage wine directly from Zaire, and he made branded brands with fruits grown in a private garden. In addition, in the vicinity of GBADOLITE, Switzerland, Venezuela Yang, to obtain meat and milk as a Mobutu family.[40] It is said that there were farms that raise Argentine goats, oil palms, oil palms, orange and grapefruit, and fruits such as pineapples, and farms. And Mobutu never eaten alone, and he has always eaten at least 100 and sometimes up to 1,000 people.
And Mobutu's GDP per capita was less than $215 (about $461 at the 2023 exchange rate), and as mentioned above, on July 4, 1992 , when hyperinflation hit Zaire , he married his daughter Yakpwa (also nicknamed 'Yaki') and Belgian businessman Pierre Janssen. After inviting over 2,500 guests,[41] They were given lobster and caviar, more than 1,000 bottles of fine wine, pink champagne, three orchestras, a special charter flight from France costing $75,000, a 13-foot-tall wedding cake shipped on the charter plane, a $75,000 wedding cake, a $70,000 wedding dress just for the daughter, and $3 million worth of jewelry.[42] , it is said that even though they had an extravagant wedding that included huge fireworks, they did not worry about the cost of wedding gifts at all. However, despite this extravagant wedding, Yakpwa and Jansen are said to have later divorced.
In particular, his most famous purchasing is a 25 -acre with a pink and white marble light at $ 5.2 million in the famous French resort destination, a swimming pool with one in the interior and outdoor, a gold -plated bathroom, and a helicopter landing area. There was Villa Del Mare, which was bought by Mobutu from Saudi Arabia in 1986, originally owned by former Fiat Chairman Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (1921 ~ 2003), and was once near the villa near the villa. There was a summer villa of Boduin .
And when I bought a $ 5.2 million villa on the Riviera coast, Mobutu asked if it would pay the dollar to the dollar after the contract, which was about 39 times that the difference was huge, but Mobutu didn't care at all. He also bought 8 million Swiss Francs (SFR) villas near Legman, Switzerland in the 1970s, and regularly went to Switzerland and stayed in France after prostate cancer surgery in Switzerland. In addition, the luxury yacht called 'Kamanyola' purchased by Mobutu in the late 1980s is said to be equipped with a banquet hall that can accommodate 100 guests, 60 rooms, two VIP rooms, and even a beauty salon. Camaguna's real figure
Mobutu's diet is also said to be extremely luxurious, one of the most luxurious among dictators.[38] When he celebrated his 55th birthday in 1985 at his villa in his hometown of Gbadolite, Mobutu had Frenchman Gaston Lenotre, considered the world's best pastry chef, make a 'large decorated cake topped with white cream' and had it transported on the Concorde.[39] In 1979, for a special event, he invited four of France's best chefs, including Paul Bocuse and Gaston Lenotre, to a party on his yacht. According to a New York Times reporter who visited the place in 1988, 'waiters in uniform served grilled quail on Limoges porcelain and poured Loire Valley wine appropriately chilled in the equatorial heat.' #
Mobutu liked traditional local foods such as nutrition, fish and eel, and ate food on a gold -filled ceramic plate, and had one of the world's best wine storage stores with 15,000 bottles of wine in the villa while drinking champagne in pink laurent ferry in the morning, and the best of the grapes of French vineyards. He drank vintage wine directly from Zaire, and he made branded brands with fruits grown in a private garden. In addition, in the vicinity of GBADOLITE, Switzerland, Venezuela Yang, to obtain meat and milk as a Mobutu family.[40] It is said that there were farms that raise Argentine goats, oil palms, oil palms, orange and grapefruit, and fruits such as pineapples, and farms. And Mobutu never eaten alone, and he has always eaten at least 100 and sometimes up to 1,000 people.
And Mobutu's GDP per capita was less than $215 (about $461 at the 2023 exchange rate), and as mentioned above, on July 4, 1992 , when hyperinflation hit Zaire , he married his daughter Yakpwa (also nicknamed 'Yaki') and Belgian businessman Pierre Janssen. After inviting over 2,500 guests,[41] They were given lobster and caviar, more than 1,000 bottles of fine wine, pink champagne, three orchestras, a special charter flight from France costing $75,000, a 13-foot-tall wedding cake shipped on the charter plane, a $75,000 wedding cake, a $70,000 wedding dress just for the daughter, and $3 million worth of jewelry.[42] , it is said that even though they had an extravagant wedding that included huge fireworks, they did not worry about the cost of wedding gifts at all. However, despite this extravagant wedding, Yakpwa and Jansen are said to have later divorced.
2.5.1. Villa in my hometown of Gvadolite
Beginning in 1967, when Mobutu was in power, he ordered donations from those with vested interests, calling it a "city created by Mobutu's will." The city, where about 1,700 people lived in mud-brick huts without running water, electricity, roads or schools, was not even marked on the map. While developing my hometown, Gbadolite, which was a remote village, housing and schools were developed.[43] , universities, hospitals, municipal buildings, churches, supermarkets, shopping malls, five-star hotels, modern water and sewage systems, dams and hydroelectric power plants, Coca-Cola factories .[44] , nuclear bunker[45] , an international airport was installed, making it a city with a population of 37,000.
Mobutu often did business in Gbadolite, so much so that his close associates even built mansions in Gbadolite, more than 1,000km north of the capital Kinshasa . It is said that Mobutu wanted to move the capital to Gbadolite someday, and in his later years, whenever his authority in the capital was shaken, Mobutu sought comfort by taking refuge in Gbadolite and being with the residents who supported him with his own benefits, so he spent almost all of his time there. It will be spent on the Camagnola yacht floating on the Gbadolite and Congo rivers.
Mobutu spent 100 to 400 million dollars to build the 'Bamboo Palace' on a 15,000 m² land, designed by Tunisian-born French architect Olivier Clement Cacoub (1920-2008), for ceremonial or official purposes (receiving foreign guests) in Gbadolite. This mansion, made up of several buildings, was so luxurious that it was even called ‘Versailles of the Jungle.’ At the time of taking power Current appearance This building has a 7-meter-high door and hall. According to Pierre Janssen, 'If you stood on one wall, you could not see the faces of the people on the opposite wall.' This building houses Pope John Paul II , French President Valery Giscardestain , UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali , David Rockefeller (1915-2017), head of the Rockefeller family , Maurice Tempelsman (1929-), a Belgian Jewish jeweler who lived with Jacqueline Kennedy , and William J. Casey . 1913-1987) High-ranking figures, including the director of the CIA, visited.
In Kawele, 7 miles from Mobutu's hometown of Gbadolite, two mansions smaller than the 'Bamboo Palace' were built. These mansions are said to be just as luxurious as the 'Bamboo Palace', and one was a Chinese-style building that imitated the Forbidden City , consisting of a tower, fountain, and water lily garden.[46] #1 #2 Another video filmed by a visitor was a modern house used as the main residence of Mobutu and his guests, and was said to be comparable in scale to the 'Versailles of the Jungle'. # #2
The Versailles of the Jungle of Egbadolite, along with the plated doors, windows, and pink marble pillars at the entrance, Claude Monet and Pierre Owest Renoir 's paintings, sculptures, goblan tapestry, stained glass, Louis 16 -year -old gold furniture plated with gold, Italy's marble, Spanish floor tiles Air conditioning, two swimming pools, six jacuplets, gorgeous bathrooms, surrounded by a loudspeaker that plays Gregorians and classical music.[47] There was a nightclub surrounded by the best vintage champagne, luxurious red walls with luxury wine and distilled, and almost every room had a 'ridiculously expensive' Murano chandelier, surrounded by moat with crocodiles , and an artificial lake with swan in the vast garden of the stadium around the palace. There was a zoo that raised lions and elephants , along with a garden with a fountain, hundreds of butterflies, and a garden with millions of flowers . There was also a tomb of the Mobutu's mother, the first wife, and the three children of Mobutu .
And Mobutu is a hazard of champagne, salmon, lobster, thick steak, sausage and sausage and sausage and sausages, at the banquet table at the conveyor belt at the conveyor belt at a banquet table in the terrace with a marble tile in front of the fountain in front of the fountain . It was said that he had hosted a lot of banquets with other foods, and for this reason, people who visited Mobutu even said that they were hungry or thirsty. According to the testimony of Francois Kosia Ngama (1975?)[48] And combined with other employees, with a total of 700 to 800 employees and more than 300 soldiers living together, and the interior was like heaven .
However, almost all of the photographs inside the Badolite Palace, which can be found on the Internet, are only desolate because of the looting immediately after the retirement of Mobutu, so the splendor of the Palace of Gibadolite is like a wall fishery . At the same time, the nightclub in the palace is less damaged. However , the inside of the Berengo Palace of Bocasa I, which was less wealthy than the Mobutu ( 3: 59 ~ 4: 17 of the documentary )[49] If you guess that the external appearance (3: 48 ~ 3: 57 of the documentary) is surprisingly simple, the Berengo Palace of Mobutu, which was luxurious, was more likely to be luxurious .
As a side note, Gbadolite is precisely the birthplace of his adoptive uncle and mother, and according to traditional custom, it was considered Mobutu's hometown because it was the birthplace of his adoptive father.
Mobutu often did business in Gbadolite, so much so that his close associates even built mansions in Gbadolite, more than 1,000km north of the capital Kinshasa . It is said that Mobutu wanted to move the capital to Gbadolite someday, and in his later years, whenever his authority in the capital was shaken, Mobutu sought comfort by taking refuge in Gbadolite and being with the residents who supported him with his own benefits, so he spent almost all of his time there. It will be spent on the Camagnola yacht floating on the Gbadolite and Congo rivers.
Mobutu spent 100 to 400 million dollars to build the 'Bamboo Palace' on a 15,000 m² land, designed by Tunisian-born French architect Olivier Clement Cacoub (1920-2008), for ceremonial or official purposes (receiving foreign guests) in Gbadolite. This mansion, made up of several buildings, was so luxurious that it was even called ‘Versailles of the Jungle.’ At the time of taking power Current appearance This building has a 7-meter-high door and hall. According to Pierre Janssen, 'If you stood on one wall, you could not see the faces of the people on the opposite wall.' This building houses Pope John Paul II , French President Valery Giscardestain , UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali , David Rockefeller (1915-2017), head of the Rockefeller family , Maurice Tempelsman (1929-), a Belgian Jewish jeweler who lived with Jacqueline Kennedy , and William J. Casey . 1913-1987) High-ranking figures, including the director of the CIA, visited.
In Kawele, 7 miles from Mobutu's hometown of Gbadolite, two mansions smaller than the 'Bamboo Palace' were built. These mansions are said to be just as luxurious as the 'Bamboo Palace', and one was a Chinese-style building that imitated the Forbidden City , consisting of a tower, fountain, and water lily garden.[46] #1 #2 Another video filmed by a visitor was a modern house used as the main residence of Mobutu and his guests, and was said to be comparable in scale to the 'Versailles of the Jungle'. # #2
The Versailles of the Jungle of Egbadolite, along with the plated doors, windows, and pink marble pillars at the entrance, Claude Monet and Pierre Owest Renoir 's paintings, sculptures, goblan tapestry, stained glass, Louis 16 -year -old gold furniture plated with gold, Italy's marble, Spanish floor tiles Air conditioning, two swimming pools, six jacuplets, gorgeous bathrooms, surrounded by a loudspeaker that plays Gregorians and classical music.[47] There was a nightclub surrounded by the best vintage champagne, luxurious red walls with luxury wine and distilled, and almost every room had a 'ridiculously expensive' Murano chandelier, surrounded by moat with crocodiles , and an artificial lake with swan in the vast garden of the stadium around the palace. There was a zoo that raised lions and elephants , along with a garden with a fountain, hundreds of butterflies, and a garden with millions of flowers . There was also a tomb of the Mobutu's mother, the first wife, and the three children of Mobutu .
And Mobutu is a hazard of champagne, salmon, lobster, thick steak, sausage and sausage and sausage and sausages, at the banquet table at the conveyor belt at the conveyor belt at a banquet table in the terrace with a marble tile in front of the fountain in front of the fountain . It was said that he had hosted a lot of banquets with other foods, and for this reason, people who visited Mobutu even said that they were hungry or thirsty. According to the testimony of Francois Kosia Ngama (1975?)[48] And combined with other employees, with a total of 700 to 800 employees and more than 300 soldiers living together, and the interior was like heaven .
However, almost all of the photographs inside the Badolite Palace, which can be found on the Internet, are only desolate because of the looting immediately after the retirement of Mobutu, so the splendor of the Palace of Gibadolite is like a wall fishery . At the same time, the nightclub in the palace is less damaged. However , the inside of the Berengo Palace of Bocasa I, which was less wealthy than the Mobutu ( 3: 59 ~ 4: 17 of the documentary )[49] If you guess that the external appearance (3: 48 ~ 3: 57 of the documentary) is surprisingly simple, the Berengo Palace of Mobutu, which was luxurious, was more likely to be luxurious .
As a side note, Gbadolite is precisely the birthplace of his adoptive uncle and mother, and according to traditional custom, it was considered Mobutu's hometown because it was the birthplace of his adoptive father.
2.6. downfall
After the Cold War ended, Western powers exerted pressure on Mobutu, demanding a multi-party system and power distribution. However, Mobutu continued to postpone the introduction of a multi-party system as he openly advocated a one-party dictatorship in the 1980s, saying, "There will be no opposition party until dirt gets in my eyes." data
However, Mobutu, who was cornered, allowed the multi-party system in a public speech on April 24, 1990, and eventually reached a situation where he had no choice but to allow elections under the multi-party system the following year. At this time, Mobutu is said to have even shed tears, probably because he was frustrated with the reality of having to allow a multi-party system. #
Around this time, university students at Lubumbashi National University, who began anti-government protests, became victims of a bloody suppression by Mobutu's security forces armed with machetes and bayonets from the night of May 11 to the early morning of May 12, the very next day . According to testimony, Mobutu's security forces suppressed students very brutally. They brutally beat college students, including stabbing them with knives, throwing them into pits, or throwing them from upper-floor windows, but also forcibly strangling them or burning them to death. It is said that they even committed the atrocity of cutting open the stomach and taking out the internal organs.
The Mobutu regime lied and said that only one person died in the crackdown, and then ignored local media reports and investigations.[50] , attempted to block judicial action and independent investigation, but one survivor testified that the death toll was over 100, and Amnesty International estimated that the death toll in the incident was 50 to 150. In May 1992, Zaire's Military Intelligence reported that an internal report confirmed 52 deaths and 7 serious injuries, but the exact nature of the massacre was unclear as most of the students' bodies had been taken 'to an unknown location.' The death toll remains unknown to this day. Ultimately, this massacre led Western countries to completely cut off support for the Mobutu regime, except for humanitarian aid. For reference, as mentioned above, given that the unit that participated in this suppression was a presidential security unit and that Zaire's central authorities, including the President's Office, were 'unambiguously' involved in the planning and establishment of this massacre, it is highly likely that Mobutu participated in the suppression planning process or even directly ordered this suppression.
In February 1991, Mobutu held elections under a multi-party system, with opposition forces growing day by day, and on August 15, 1992, Étienne Tshisekedi (1932-2017)[51] A transitional cabinet called the Council of Sovereign States (CNS) was formed, with .[52] , and yet Mobutu said in 1993: “If my people need me, I can stay in power for another five, 10 or even 20 years.” He said he had no intention of giving up his power. However, his power was further weakened as a large number of refugees, reaching 1.5 million people, flowed into Zaire due to ethnic conflict in Rwanda . The Mobutu regime began in 1994. Tensions in the east increased with the massacre of 500,000 Hutus who were fleeing to Zaire after losing the Rwandan Civil War . Meanwhile, since the aforementioned 1993 riots, Prime Minister Etienne Tshisekedi has maintained that he is the only legitimate Prime Minister of Zaire.[53] As the Washington Post put it, Zaire has become “a country with two governments.” #
With the end of the Cold War, the Western world turned against him, and Mobutu entered the path of downfall. To make matters worse, he suffered from prostate cancer and joined the Rwandan army , Interahamwe, who fled to Zaire to keep Rwanda in check. Hiding war criminals , etc.[54] After intervening in the Rwandan civil war , it escalated into the First Congo War by rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila, who joined hands with Paul Kagame , who rose up calling for the overthrow of the regime amid the ethnic conflict between Tutsi and Hutu .
Mobutu was eventually defeated by the rebels and Rwanda and went into exile sick. To be precise, in 1996, while Mobutu was away in the Congo receiving treatment for cancer in Switzerland, most of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was occupied by rebels led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila. On May 17, 1997, the rebels took over power, ending 32 years in power, and after being ousted, he fled abroad on a plane from Gbadolite. For reference, Bill Richardson (1947-2023) , the U.S. representative to the United Nations, U.S. congressman, and special envoy of President Bill Clinton , met with Mobutu in Zaire in early May 1997, just before Mobutu's ouster.[55] made public Mobutu's resignation and said, "I said the mess you are in is not our mess. You did not rule your country." He left a vitriolic comment based on the fact:
Immediately after Mobutu's exposure, Zaire's people were sincere rejoicing the fall of the dictator who had been in the country, and Zaire's people marched on the streets, graffiti and trampled the rebels, and cheered. Part 1: 36 ~ 2: 29 of the video was said to have been retaliated by the people at the time he was expelled, and even Mobutu's bodyguards fired guns in the plane where Mobutu ride.[56]
He fled by plane from Gbadolite, went through Togo, and stayed in Morocco from May 23 of the same year, seeking asylum in France and elsewhere, but was rejected. Mobutu Sese Seko eventually died of prostate cancer in a military hospital in Morocco on September 7, 1997, at the age of 66, and was buried in an above-ground mausoleum in a Christian cemetery in Morocco. At the time of his death, Mobutu weighed less than 40 kg, and the pain was so unbearable that he desperately wanted to die as soon as possible. Most terminal cancers are painful, but prostate cancer is especially horribly painful.[57]
For reference, before his death, Mobutu ate frugally like a monk. This was not because Mobutu became poor, but because, faced with the loneliness of being abandoned by his family and imminent death, he belatedly repented and discovered his Christian instincts as a young man, and realized that everything he had enjoyed so far was ultimately nothing more than vanity.[58] The day before his death, Mobutu, who enjoyed drinking pink champagne, drank cassava fufu without sauce or side dishes.[59] He requested that the dish be served as his last meal. #
As soon as Kabila's rebels entered Gbadolite and saw Mobutu's villas, including the 'Versailles of the jungle', they immediately entered the villas, destroyed the furniture inside the villas, tore up the silk wallpaper, and looted everything, leaving behind 'even the last cheapest item.' Currently, Mobutu's palace has been reduced to a residence for soldiers and their families, the roof has been torn off, the red skeleton is exposed, and bushes, weeds, and trees have been destroyed. It is covered in rubble, rats, tropical insects, and reptiles live inside, and the walls are full of graffiti, clearly showing what a disaster is.[60] And Gbadolite International Airport, once home to Concorde airliners, is now an airport with only two or three small aircraft a week , and as of 2015, Gbadolite locals reportedly charge visitors $20 to gain access to the former president's private property.
In any case, even after the end of Mobutu's dictatorship, which turned the country into one of the poorest countries with bizarre levels of corruption and extravagance, the aftereffects show no signs of abating. Moreover, even after Mobutu's ouster, the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo worsened significantly due to the aftereffects of the Congo War, which was even called 'Africa's World War'. Compared to Mobutu's time, economic growth has occurred to a certain extent, but the fruits of the growth are concentrated in the capital, Kinshasa, and the west, while the east is still in shambles, with rebels rampaging around.
However, Mobutu, who was cornered, allowed the multi-party system in a public speech on April 24, 1990, and eventually reached a situation where he had no choice but to allow elections under the multi-party system the following year. At this time, Mobutu is said to have even shed tears, probably because he was frustrated with the reality of having to allow a multi-party system. #
Around this time, university students at Lubumbashi National University, who began anti-government protests, became victims of a bloody suppression by Mobutu's security forces armed with machetes and bayonets from the night of May 11 to the early morning of May 12, the very next day . According to testimony, Mobutu's security forces suppressed students very brutally. They brutally beat college students, including stabbing them with knives, throwing them into pits, or throwing them from upper-floor windows, but also forcibly strangling them or burning them to death. It is said that they even committed the atrocity of cutting open the stomach and taking out the internal organs.
The Mobutu regime lied and said that only one person died in the crackdown, and then ignored local media reports and investigations.[50] , attempted to block judicial action and independent investigation, but one survivor testified that the death toll was over 100, and Amnesty International estimated that the death toll in the incident was 50 to 150. In May 1992, Zaire's Military Intelligence reported that an internal report confirmed 52 deaths and 7 serious injuries, but the exact nature of the massacre was unclear as most of the students' bodies had been taken 'to an unknown location.' The death toll remains unknown to this day. Ultimately, this massacre led Western countries to completely cut off support for the Mobutu regime, except for humanitarian aid. For reference, as mentioned above, given that the unit that participated in this suppression was a presidential security unit and that Zaire's central authorities, including the President's Office, were 'unambiguously' involved in the planning and establishment of this massacre, it is highly likely that Mobutu participated in the suppression planning process or even directly ordered this suppression.
In February 1991, Mobutu held elections under a multi-party system, with opposition forces growing day by day, and on August 15, 1992, Étienne Tshisekedi (1932-2017)[51] A transitional cabinet called the Council of Sovereign States (CNS) was formed, with .[52] , and yet Mobutu said in 1993: “If my people need me, I can stay in power for another five, 10 or even 20 years.” He said he had no intention of giving up his power. However, his power was further weakened as a large number of refugees, reaching 1.5 million people, flowed into Zaire due to ethnic conflict in Rwanda . The Mobutu regime began in 1994. Tensions in the east increased with the massacre of 500,000 Hutus who were fleeing to Zaire after losing the Rwandan Civil War . Meanwhile, since the aforementioned 1993 riots, Prime Minister Etienne Tshisekedi has maintained that he is the only legitimate Prime Minister of Zaire.[53] As the Washington Post put it, Zaire has become “a country with two governments.” #
With the end of the Cold War, the Western world turned against him, and Mobutu entered the path of downfall. To make matters worse, he suffered from prostate cancer and joined the Rwandan army , Interahamwe, who fled to Zaire to keep Rwanda in check. Hiding war criminals , etc.[54] After intervening in the Rwandan civil war , it escalated into the First Congo War by rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila, who joined hands with Paul Kagame , who rose up calling for the overthrow of the regime amid the ethnic conflict between Tutsi and Hutu .
Mobutu was eventually defeated by the rebels and Rwanda and went into exile sick. To be precise, in 1996, while Mobutu was away in the Congo receiving treatment for cancer in Switzerland, most of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was occupied by rebels led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila. On May 17, 1997, the rebels took over power, ending 32 years in power, and after being ousted, he fled abroad on a plane from Gbadolite. For reference, Bill Richardson (1947-2023) , the U.S. representative to the United Nations, U.S. congressman, and special envoy of President Bill Clinton , met with Mobutu in Zaire in early May 1997, just before Mobutu's ouster.[55] made public Mobutu's resignation and said, "I said the mess you are in is not our mess. You did not rule your country." He left a vitriolic comment based on the fact:
Immediately after Mobutu's exposure, Zaire's people were sincere rejoicing the fall of the dictator who had been in the country, and Zaire's people marched on the streets, graffiti and trampled the rebels, and cheered. Part 1: 36 ~ 2: 29 of the video was said to have been retaliated by the people at the time he was expelled, and even Mobutu's bodyguards fired guns in the plane where Mobutu ride.[56]
He fled by plane from Gbadolite, went through Togo, and stayed in Morocco from May 23 of the same year, seeking asylum in France and elsewhere, but was rejected. Mobutu Sese Seko eventually died of prostate cancer in a military hospital in Morocco on September 7, 1997, at the age of 66, and was buried in an above-ground mausoleum in a Christian cemetery in Morocco. At the time of his death, Mobutu weighed less than 40 kg, and the pain was so unbearable that he desperately wanted to die as soon as possible. Most terminal cancers are painful, but prostate cancer is especially horribly painful.[57]
For reference, before his death, Mobutu ate frugally like a monk. This was not because Mobutu became poor, but because, faced with the loneliness of being abandoned by his family and imminent death, he belatedly repented and discovered his Christian instincts as a young man, and realized that everything he had enjoyed so far was ultimately nothing more than vanity.[58] The day before his death, Mobutu, who enjoyed drinking pink champagne, drank cassava fufu without sauce or side dishes.[59] He requested that the dish be served as his last meal. #
As soon as Kabila's rebels entered Gbadolite and saw Mobutu's villas, including the 'Versailles of the jungle', they immediately entered the villas, destroyed the furniture inside the villas, tore up the silk wallpaper, and looted everything, leaving behind 'even the last cheapest item.' Currently, Mobutu's palace has been reduced to a residence for soldiers and their families, the roof has been torn off, the red skeleton is exposed, and bushes, weeds, and trees have been destroyed. It is covered in rubble, rats, tropical insects, and reptiles live inside, and the walls are full of graffiti, clearly showing what a disaster is.[60] And Gbadolite International Airport, once home to Concorde airliners, is now an airport with only two or three small aircraft a week , and as of 2015, Gbadolite locals reportedly charge visitors $20 to gain access to the former president's private property.
In any case, even after the end of Mobutu's dictatorship, which turned the country into one of the poorest countries with bizarre levels of corruption and extravagance, the aftereffects show no signs of abating. Moreover, even after Mobutu's ouster, the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo worsened significantly due to the aftereffects of the Congo War, which was even called 'Africa's World War'. Compared to Mobutu's time, economic growth has occurred to a certain extent, but the fruits of the growth are concentrated in the capital, Kinshasa, and the west, while the east is still in shambles, with rebels rampaging around.
3. ma'am
- Marie-Antoinette (Marie-Antoinette Mobutu, 1941-1977): Her real name is Marie-Antoinette Gbiatibwa Gobbe Yetene. She was born in Banjiville (now Mobai-Mbongo), Equateur Province, in 1941. She married Mobutu in 1955, at the age of 14, when she was a non-commissioned officer. She had nine children, but in 1977 she died of heart failure in Switzerland. Her body was buried in Gbadolite, where her chapel was destroyed after Mobutu's fall, and she was reburied in Rabat, Morocco.
- Bobi Ladawa Mobutu (1945~): Born in Dula, western Ekater province, attended a Roman Catholic convent school in the capital Kinshasa, and worked as a teacher before marrying Mobutu in 1977 and giving birth to four children. She is just as corrupt as her husband. In 1996, a minister who feared that he would be dismissed in a cabinet reshuffle flew to Gbadolite with a bag containing $1 million in cash to give to her. There is even an anecdote about him becoming Deputy Prime Minister. It is said that after the fall of Mobutu's regime, she fled to Morocco with billions of dollars she had embezzled and has been living in exile in Europe with her twin sister Kosia Ladawa (1945-). As a side note, Mobutu also had three children from his relationship with Kozia.
4. etc
- In terms of scale of crime , it far surpasses even the infamous Idi Amin , Jean-Bedel Bokassa , and Francisco Macias Nguema . Bokassa dispatched troops to support the Bangui massacre in 1979 , protected the main culprits of the Rwandan massacre when they went into exile, and the butterfly effect resulted in the Second Congo War . In Africa, each of the worst disasters related to dictatorship , genocide , and war is named. Even though the first three were severely mentally insane and were unable to govern normally in the first place, Mobutu was completely sane, so there was no room for consideration.
- Belgian writer David Van Reybrouck (1971~) published 'Congo: The Epic History of a People' in 2010.[61] ', a non-fiction book covering the history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since prehistoric times, states that as Mobutu toured the country, he used the 'tradition' of Choyakwon to have local chiefs sacrifice virgins to Mobutu.[62] , also raised suspicions that he insulted the wives of cabinet ministers and slept with them to find out their secrets.[63] , this is cross-corroborated by a former minister from Zaire who was interviewed in the above-mentioned Time magazine article, who explained, "The president enjoys an almost feudal seigneury. He uses sex as a tool to dominate the men around him. You get money or a Mercedes-Benz, he takes your wife and you work for him . "
- He enjoyed wearing leopard skin hats, which made leopard skin his trademark. Therefore, his nickname was ‘the walking banker wearing a leopard skin hat’, which also reflected his corruption. Additionally, from 1972 to 1990, Mobutu always wore suits and ties (even after he came down from power after the end of the dictatorship) due to the "a bas le costume" policy that banned suits and ties for the absurd reason that they were symbols of the colonial era. Abacost, a collarless coat worn without a formal shirt or tie, which he forced Congolese citizens to wear, also became one of his trademarks.
- It is said that the clothes worn by Mobutu and his associates were specially made in an atelier in Belgium, and the leopard fur hats were also custom-made in Paris.[64]
- He once flew from France to Zaire in a private DC-8 and immediately returned to France to retrieve a fashion magazine his wife had forgotten.
- Juvenal Habyarimana, who died in a plane crash in 1994 The Rwandan president's body had been stored in Gbatolite since immediately after his death was announced, but in 1997, upon learning that Kabila's rebels were approaching Gbatolite, he consulted with Habyarimana's bereaved family to discuss how to dispose of the body. Finally, on May 16, 1997, exactly one day before his ouster and the day the rebels took control of Kinshasa, Habyarimana's body was cremated at Mobutu's request.
- He even stole the prize money for participating in the World Cup . At the 1974 World Cup in West Germany , Zaire played as a representative for Africa, and Yugoslavia 's great Vidinic was in charge of the team, which was drawn into a group with Scotland , Yugoslavia, and Brazil . When Zaire lost 0-2 to Scotland in the first game and was about to play Yugoslavia in the second game, when the players found out that they had not received the tournament participation prize money that was supposed to be paid to them, they announced through the Minister of Sports, who was also serving as the head of the cheering team, that the country would take all the tournament prize money. Naturally, the players' morale was so low that they even considered a forfeit, and as a result, Zaire lost to Yugoslavia with a score of '0:9', the largest margin in World Cup history. After that, he threatened to kill not only the team but also the players' families, saying that if they lost to the Brazilian team by more than 4 goals, they would not be able to return home. As such, the team also lost 0:3 against Brazil and had to end the tournament with no goals and 14 goals conceded in all three matches. The players were so terrified at the time that defender Mwepu Ilunga even made an unmannered play by kicking the ball away to interfere with Brazil's free kick in order to get sent off in protest against the Mobutu regime. In Korea, there is a rumor that Yugoslav coach Vidinic fired the coach on the grounds that the team might lose to Yugoslavia and installed the local Minister of Sports as acting coach, thus forming this division. At the end of the game, he fired the Minister of Sports again, saying that the goal was to get rid of his political opponent, the Minister of Sports. However, this is not true, and Coach Vidinic led all three group stage games. # In the end , it took 52 years for the national team, which had been defeated by Mobutu, to return to the World Cup finals until the 2026 North and Central America World Cup , when the Mobutu regime collapsed and the country's name was changed to the Democratic Republic of Congo and the number of participating countries expanded to 48. And in that tournament, the Democratic Republic of the Congo achieved its first goal, first point, first win, and first passage through the group stage.
- It is said that he had a history of stealing when he was young. People around him at the time may have never imagined it, but Mobutu went beyond a needle thief becoming a cow thief and became a 'thief of the country' who completely ruined the country.
- Mobutu demonstrated outstanding capabilities on the other side, and in fact, it is said that Zaire, which had more than 450 tribes while Mobutu was in power, developed a stronger national consciousness than anywhere else in Africa. During his time in power, Mobutu successfully promoted the use of the major tribal languages, Lingala , Swahili , and Luba-Lulua, to unify the people, and his emphasis on African traditions led the Zairians under Mobutu to experience a period of remarkable cultural creativity in song, dress, and art, which led even many of Mobutu's harshest critics to call Africa a collection of artificially drawn nations divided by ethnic animosities. It was evaluated as a 'major achievement'. Considering that ethnic conflicts frequently occur in Africa, even excluding the Rwandan civil war , we cannot help but praise Mobutu's achievements . If he had not been corrupt, he could have been well-received as a leader with outstanding ability to prevent national division, like Josip Broz Tito, but he has lost all chance of receiving a good reputation due to corruption. #
- Although he tried to inherit power to his eldest son, Jean-Paul NYIWA Mobutu (1955-1994) , he died of AIDS at a hospital in Paris on September 17, 1994 . For reference, Nini has served as a circuit ambassador, an individual and diplomatic advisor to the head of the state, an international cooperation officer, and a minister of foreign ministers, and after his death, Ngawali, who was a sister and diplomatic torture for the head of state, was appointed.[65]
- His son Kongulu (1970?~1998), whom he had with his first wife, was a captain in the DSP who served as a powerful figure in the regime during Mobutu's final years and was notorious for monitoring and cruelly treating his father's political opponents. After fighting with his father over money laundering , he fled to Libya and the Middle East , causing his father to send soldiers to rescue his son.[66] He was in charge of smuggling under his real name, accepting bribes from smugglers in Lebanon and secretly exporting his country's gold to Gambia . In April 1997, as Laurent-Désiré Kabila 's rebels advanced into Kinshasa, he compiled a list of 500 of his father's political opponents to be assassinated. Even when his father was ousted on May 17 of the same year, he remained in Kinshasa to 'achieve' the plan. However, a day later, he was the last of Zaire's high-ranking officials to escape and fled to Monaco via Congo , but his father died. One year later , on September 24, 1998, he died of AIDS at the age of 28. However, when Kongulu heard that drunken U.S. Marines were abusing and taking hostages near Kinshasa in February 1991, he became indignant and surrounded them with his subordinates, leading to negotiations and rescuing the hostages.[67] , he also showed an unexpected noblesse oblige aspect , such as playing a decisive role in evacuating Belgian and European citizens from Kinshasa to Brazzaville after the sacking of Kinshasa in 1993 .
- He is said to have been close friends with Pat Robertson, a far-right Baptist pastor in the United States . Robertson once said he would lift the State Department's ban on African leaders during Mobutu's lifetime, and he even visited Gbadolite's villa.
- It is an ironic reality, but after Mobutu stepped down, a living hell that was incomparable to the time of his rule unfolded for as many as three years, and chaos continues even now. Joseph Kabila , who ruled for 18 years as the new ruler, was also an incompetent dictator, so the Congolese people miss the poor days of Mobutu's rule. Even Mobutu's long-time opponents say, 'During Mobutu's time, there was a country, but now there is no country, only a jungle.'[68] They say that they think Mobutu is better than Kabila. Of course, the civil war continued afterwards, but the difference was that it was limited to battles and defenses in the eastern region. In fact, this phenomenon frequently occurs not only in the Democratic Republic of the Congo but also in several countries suffering from civil war in Africa . A clear example is that in the Central African Republic , which is suffering from a civil war , there are many people who regard Jean-Bedel Bokassa as ‘the greatest leader in the history of the Central African Republic.’ In Uganda , there are people who miss Idi Amin , and in Equatorial Guinea , there are even people who miss Francisco Macias Nguema .
However, this social trend is closer to a phenomenon of criticism of the incumbent leader, and is far from a positive evaluation of Mobutu, so there are many views in Congo that ridicule this sentiment. It also appears in an article about the Congo River in the November 2015 issue of National Geographic, and Congolese people who talk about this laugh at it as if they were refuting it , saying that there is no difference between then and now, and that it is just better because the memories of the past are vague. Even other Congolese people who said that Mobutu was better could not actively refute the statement.
- I visited Korea with a government delegation from June 7 to 10, 1982, during the time of former President Chun Doo-hwan . Related stamps were also created. President of the Republic of Zaire visits Korea
- Even today, Mobutu's party still exists and holds seats. #
- Unlike Zaire, which was renamed Democratic Republic of Congo among the African names given by Mobutu, Kinshasa did not revert to its original name, Léopoldville. This is probably because Leopold II , the origin of the original name, was a brutal massacrer.
- Mobutu is famous for originating the term kleptocracy , but King Leopold II of Belgium , who colonized the Independent State of the Congo , the predecessor of the Democratic Republic of Congo , engaged in kleptocracy that in some ways surpasses Mobutu. Without exaggerating, Congo was exploited entirely as private land to enrich one's own property. Of course, Mobutu did not just commit massacres to accumulate wealth, but he treated the Congo as a private land to enrich himself, which is the same as Leopold.
5. look around
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6. Reference
- Leaving Fire in the Aftermath: Mobutu Sese Seko - Time Magazine, February 22, 1993
- Zaire: An African Horror Story - from the August 1993 issue of The Atlantic magazine
- When He Was King - Following Marshal Mobutu Sese Seko, former Kleptomaniac Commander-in-Chief of Zaire - in Metro, May 22-28, 1997
- Where the Concorde once flew: the story of President Mobutu's 'African Versailles' Gallery - The Guardian Among the articles on February 10, 2015, Mobutu's ultra-luxury life and the ruins of the palace after Mobutu's fall come out.
[1] However, his mother died in 1971 after watching Mobutu became president.[2] It is ironic, considering that Mobutu was a colonial collaborator who rose to the rank of major in the Belgian army.[3] To be exact, it is said that out of 9,763,510 ballots, there were only 72,378 negative votes.[4] It is even said that this was the best place among Zaire's prison.[5] At the same time, the intro video has returned normally since the 1980s. From the late 90's to the mid -2000s, the Congo Democratic Republic of Korea was in the mid -2000s, and there was no data from the late 90's to the mid -2000s. At the end of the 80's and early 90's, the intro is a lot of greening data on YouTube ( December 25, 1991 (Soviet dismantling one day before the dismantling of the Soviet Union) ). In 1985, the intro music was used with similar instruments, and in 1993, Intro Music was excerpted from Ludwig Van Beethoven 's Piano Concerto No. 1.[6] For reference, I recorded black and white TV.[7] Kim Il -sung said that Mobutu, who desperately learned himself, was a good junior and supported Mobutu in many ways, including military training and economic cooperation.[8] Unlike dictators who are infamous for their extravagance, the most important thing is to strengthen their power and use extravagance as one of the means of exercising power (a representative example is Bokassa's coronation), Mobutu was not exaggerating, but extravagance itself was the goal of state affairs.[9] This can be seen from the ducks of the pre -modern state.[10] According to the 1978 Jaire Bank's record, 50 Jaire illegally leaked about $ 300 million overseas, and the largest of these companies was owned by Mobutu and his immediate family.[11] For reference, in terms of the level of U.S. official development assistance ( ODA ) support during the Cold War (converted to 2010 values), Zaire ranks third after Tanzania and Ethiopia , and there is almost no difference in support between those three countries. Of course, looking at it objectively, the ODA received by Zaire is a very large amount of aid, amounting to $50 billion in 2010 value, and ranks 12th in total aid . #[12] Although he recorded fairly high economic growth rates of 9.3% in 1969 and 8.1% in 1973, the other years in which economic growth rates exceeded 3% were recorded while he was in power: 1966 (6.8%), 1968 (4.3%), There were only 7 years in total: 1974 (3.1%), 1984 (5.5%), and 1986 (4.7%).[13] Zaire had 31,000 miles of roads at independence, but by 1980, usable roads had fallen to less than 3,700 miles. By the time he was ousted, more than 85% of the existing road network had been replaced by forests, and the Congo River could be called the only remaining east-west highway, and there were almost no ships passing through the Congo River. And beyond electricity and water, the telephone system was also broken, and the reason is that Mobutu did not improve the telephone system at all to prevent his political opponents from communicating with the outside world and plotting 'conspiracies'. In fact, Mobutu installed Israel's state-of-the-art communications system in his villa.[14] Not per 100 people.[15] To be exact, 0.5*0.87/1,000*1,00= 0.435%[16] What's even more surprising is that as of 1980, the number of TVs nationwide was only 8,000. 150,000 radios. At that time, Zaire's population was close to 30 million, but it was still at that level.[17] On September 24, 1991, more than 200 people (including one French paratrooper) died while the Zaire army and its colluding residents looted major cities across the country. After the looting, Kinshasa looked like it had been hit hard by war. To protect foreigners, Belgian and French paratroopers were dispatched to evacuate 20,000 foreigners.[18] Mobutu asked the soldiers, “Why should I take money when I have weapons?” It is said that there was even a question asked.[19] For reference, the inflation was accelerated, and in 1989, 10,000 Zaire bills were published and 20,000 and 50,000 Zaire bills were issued in 1991. In 1992, 100,000, 200,000, 500,000, and 1 million Zaille bills were issued.[20] Mobutu claimed that Etienne Tshisekedi encouraged the violence by urging soldiers not to accept the newly minted 5 million Zaire banknotes as salaries. #[21] It is said that he died after being shot with a machine gun at the embassy. # Later, in 2025, rioters occupied and looted the embassies of several countries, but no ambassador lost his life. #[22] The Belgian government also revealed that soldiers raped Belgian nuns .[23] Some even claimed that the majority of those killed during the looting were regular soldiers.[24] Later, when the Mobutu was expelled in 1997, the following year, the Nuja was replaced by the Congo Democratic Republic Franc with the exchange rate of '1 Congo Democratic Republic Franc = 100,000 Nuboja'. For reference, the exchange rate of the old franc and the new francs was 300 trillion francs.[25] Even after only less than 4% in 2004, the inflation rate of the Congo Democratic Republic has always surpassed two digits until 2008.[26] However, as in Equatorial Guinea, it is not uncommon for corrupt police in Africa to extort money from both locals and foreigners at checkpoints. In fact, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo do Mobutuna, although slightly better than his uncle Francisco Macias Nguema, is an extremely corrupt dictator who has brought Equatorial Guinea to the end of the resource curse .[27] This means that in the capital alone, more than three children died of starvation every day.[28] For reference, Mobutu later claimed that his available funds "do not exceed $10 million," citing his "honor as a Christian and a chief," but he had no choice but to admit that this figure did not include overseas real estate he owned and other assets he did not consider liquid.[29] At the exchange rate in 2023, 38.62 billion dollars (1965) -> 11.39 billion dollars (1997)[30] At the 2023 exchange rate, $2,216 (1965) -> $254.3 (1997). Substituting this into the IMF 's per capita GDP estimates for each country in 2022, Kenya will drop from the level of Kenya ($2,269, 150th out of 195 countries) in 32 years to the world's worst and least developed country. It has fallen to the same level as Burundi ($249, 194th out of 194 countries).[31] It is true that the land reform was a mess, but the root cause of the land reform is that the white monopoly on land during the colonial period continued for a long time even after independence.[32] Even Venezuela , which has the world's largest oil reserves, was doing so well that its GDP per capita was higher than that of Italy during its heyday, and during the Hugo Chavez era, the people were able to enjoy the benefits of oil (without even dreaming of what would happen later).[33] However, even at that time, ‘1 dollar = 2 Zaire’ was implicitly maintained.[34] Similarly, Zimbabwe's hyperinflation peaked in 2008, but Zimbabwean President Mugabe's ranking as the world's worst dictator and second place in the Fragile State Index were both recorded in statistics in 2009, the following year.[35] For reference, in this survey, second place was Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos , who embezzled $5 to $10 billion , and first place was Indonesian President Suharto , who embezzled $15 to $35 billion . However, unlike Marcos, whose level of luxury surpassed that of Mobutu, Suharto never showed any extravagant behavior, although his youngest son, Tommy Suharto , caused controversy with his extravagance. Marcos also enjoyed food with common tastes, so he has never caused controversy with his eating habits.[36] In fact, in 2016, Mobutu 's villa in Switzerland was purchased at auction for 5.5 million euros (about 7.75 billion won), and the villa is said to have an interior area of 700 m² and a garden of 6 hectares. # And according to the testimony of Mobutu's Belgian son-in-law, who will be described later, Mobutu owns the Château Fond'Roy, a luxurious villa worth 8 to 9 million dollars, with a 6ha garden and 40 bedrooms, south of Brussels , in Belgium alone.[37] In addition, he owned 6 real estate properties and 8 apartments, the total value of which was said to be $25 million. #[37] It's just a coincidence, but this villa was built to be used as a villa for Leopold II, who brutally colonized Mobutu's homeland and slaughtered more than tens of thousands of people. However, in 1909, when construction began, Leopold II died and Leopold II could not use the villa. For reference, Mobutu used this villa for receptions, parties, and state dinners with Belgian dignitaries, and it is said that 10 people, including a driver, servants, and bodyguards, resided in the villa. #[38] This is because Marcos and Nicola, who ranked second in corruption dictators , Chau Shesku , Robert Mugabe , and Francisco Masiasiaz Nigima spared no money in villa and luxury goods, but the diet, which was frugal for vegetarian, and the first place in the dictator, enjoyed a cup ramen . It's too contrasting. In fact, it is common for dictators born in unusual homes. On the contrary , Kim Il -sung and Mobutu were unusual cases .[39] Jean Bethel Bocasa also ordered a cake in Paris, but at least the Concord could not be loaded.[40] Mobutu flew a government-owned DC-8 airliner to Venezuela 32 times in one year, bringing back 5,000 woolly sheep.[41] Mobutu provided guests arriving at the hotel with boxes containing exactly one billion zaires, which at this point was said to be the price of a pack of Marlboro cigarettes.[42] The total amount that Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier spent on his wedding in 1980 was 2 to 3 million dollars. Because of this, Duvalier's wedding was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the 'most luxurious wedding,' but Mobutu did not spend any money on the wedding. He spent $3 million on jewelry alone , not the entire amount, easily surpassing Duvalier's record. Moreover, as of 1980, Haiti's per capita GDP was about $245 (about $894 at the 2023 exchange rate), and considering that even without considering exchange rate fluctuations, per capita GDP was higher than Zaire's in 1992, it is surprising how thoughtless Mobutu was. We can guess whether he was a dictator.[43] Among them, the College Presidentiel, a school run by a Jesuit priest who took over the school, had a chemistry lab, a physics lab, a computer lab, Olympic games facilities, and all kinds of band instruments.[44] It says it never worked.[45] It was the largest nuclear bunker in Africa, capable of accommodating more than 500 people, and was said to be the only nuclear bunker in Central Africa at the time of construction.[46] Most of the workers involved in the construction came directly from China.[47] Gold fixtures and European antiques, gold-plated bathtubs, filled with crystals and, of course, gilded walls are said to have been painted.[48] It is said that he kidnapped hundreds of Rwandan refugees and treated them like slaves.[49] It was a golden level comparable to Donald Trump 's penthouse.[50] In fact, Ntesa Ne Mpemoziki, who was the chief prosecutor of Shaba (the region to which Lubumbashi belonged and today's Katanga province) at the time, was trying to investigate the massacre, was forcibly stopped by his superiors, and was soon summoned to Kinshasa and demoted to Kisangani in September of that year . It is said that the chief prosecutor of Shaba region was not elected until the following year. #[51] After joining the coup in 1965, he was an aide of Mobutu who participated in the 1967 amendment, embezzlement, and opposition suppression in the early days of the Mobutu regime. His son , Felix's reign , has been serving as president of the Democratic Republic of Congo since 2019.[52] Perhaps because of his long -term dictatorship, nearly 400 opposition parties were registered in the short term (some of them were only one party with only one founder), and officially 66 opposition parties were officially recognized.[53] This means that they will not recognize Prime Minister Faustin Birindwa, who was appointed by Mobutu.[54] They later reorganize the Rwanda Liberation Army and reorganized into democracy for the liberation of Rwanda . These Rwanda Hutu rebels are sitting in the Congo Democratic Republic to become a toho warlord .[55] He served as the governor of New Mexico from 2003 to 2011 .[56] This is in contrast to the fact that Uganda 's Idiamine was expelled by the Tanzanian army in the hatred of the people , riding a helicopter, but he was still escorted by five limousines. Even the guardians did not give their salaries properly, making them live as a hunting house. Even Francisco Masiaz Nigima was able to take hundreds of followers when he escaped after the coup.[57] In fact, the reason terminal cancer is scary is not because it is hopeless. There are many diseases that have no hope of cure. Rather, it is because life right before death is so miserable.[58] Similarly, after being ousted, Jean Bethel Bokassa of the Central African Republic was even sentenced to death, but after being pardoned, he converted to Christianity, lived quietly with only a small pension, and gave up drinking and women, which he enjoyed while in power, before living and dying.[59] fufu, a traditional dish eaten in West and Central Africa. After cooking cassava, etc., it is pounded in a mortar to make a lump with a dough-like texture.[60] Similarly, Bocasa's Bocasa Berengo Palace was plundered by the rebels and was left unattended.[61] By the end of 2012, 300,000 copies had been sold in Dutch, and in 2014 a translation was published in English .[62] According to Raybrook, the families of the maidens considered it an honor to offer them to Mobutu.[63] For reference, to write this book, van Raebroek visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo 10 times over 6 years, conducted over 500 interviews, and even visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo immigrant community in Guangzhou . If the claims about women's wealth had been nothing more than gossip, they would not have been written down in a book.[64] This is similar to the fact that the people's uniform that Kim Jong-il often wore was actually imported from high-quality Western fabrics and handmade by North Korean craftsmen.[65] In fact, even if Niniwa survived and Mobutu was not driven out in 1997, the hereditary itself was unlikely to succeed because the Zaire economy was already messed up by corruption.[66] It is said that the soldiers did not successfully return to Zaire.[67] The nickname ' Saddam Hussein ' was not given to Kongulu because of his evil deeds, but was a complimentary expression given by the Zairians , who saw Kongulu in this way and said he was like 'the great Iraqi leader who stood up to the United States .' do #[68] For reference, the person who said this was Joseph Olenghankoy, who was a hardline opponent of Mobutu, who was arrested 45 times during the Mobutu era. For reference, Olengankoy served as Minister of Transport and Communications of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2003-2004, and on December 31, 2016, he was Chairman of the National Commission to Monitor the St Sylvester Agreement Process to Resolve the 2016 Political Crisis .
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