One of the most important assassinations of the 20th century may well have been that of Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of the Republic of Congo, killed on January 17, 1961. In his new book, The Assassination of Lumumba (Verso), Ludo De Witte, an independent Belgian sociologist, draws on a vast array of declassified documents to argue that Belgium, the United States, and the United Nations played pivotal roles in the murder of one of Africa's pioneers of postcolonialism. After the book appeared in Dutch, in 1999, the Belgian parliament commissioned an official investigation of the murder.
Q. Any word on the commission's findings so far?
A. It's scheduled to have its report at the end of October. Officially we don't know yet, but there are some interim reports. Officially secret, but information I got from reliable sources doesn't change much of what I have written. There is a bit more implication of the Belgian king [Baudouin] -- not directly into the assassination of Lumumba himself, but he was watching very closely developments in the Congo and was being informed nearly day by day by people in Africa. He sent out his advice and warnings. We still have no direct information about his role in the assassination, but it's clear that the shadow of the Belgian monarchy was there.
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Will anyone be held accountable?
A. The facts are now known. It now depends on what the commission decides. There is a sharp dispute between some members of parliament, who are clearly doing their utmost to clear the West from all responsibility and putting everything onto the Congolese shoulders. And there are others who want to go further with this research and draw the popular conclusions. So what will be the compromise?
Q. What kind of response would you like to