Xavier Radio Ug News 24 7
A court in Belgium has ordered a 93-year-old former Belgian diplomat to stand trial over his alleged role in the 1961 assassination of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s first Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba.
Etienne Davignon is accused of the unlawful detention and illegal transfer of Lumumba to the Katanga region, where he was later killed.
93-year-old Etienne Davignon was a young Belgian diplomat in Congo at the time of Patrice Lumumba’s assassination in 1961.
Lumumba was killed by separatist forces in the Katanga region, with the backing of Belgian mercenaries, according to historical accounts.
In 2011, his children filed a war crimes complaint, seeking justice for his killing.
Davignon now faces charges linked to war crimes, including the illegal transfer of Lumumba and his associates, as well as their mistreatment and denial of a fair trial.
He is the only survivor of the 11 Belgians accused in that case.
The move by the Belgian court has been welcomed by many in Congo, where Lumumba is still seen as a symbol of independence and resistance to colonial rule.
He became the country’s first prime minister after independence in June 1960, but was killed just a year later.
For decades, his death has remained a painful chapter in Congo’s history.
In 2022, Belgium returned one of his remains, a tooth, to his family during a formal ceremony.
The trial is the first criminal prosecution of a European official for crimes committed during the colonial period.
The court says proceedings may begin in 2027.
www.sabcnews.com, https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/1114136-2/
