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Whoes rule was Congo Free State under in the 19th century?
Belgium
Why did foreign companies help Joseph Mobutu take power of Congo in 1965?
"The US played a major role in converting the newly independent Congo into a Cold War battleground. The US administration in the 1960s authorised the murder of Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba, who had been voted into office just months earlier in the territory's first-ever democratic election. Washington, who was instrumental in helping Mobutu Seso Seko to power and kept him there for more than 30 years, bears heavy responsibility for the disastrous economic conditions, massive corruption, and suppression of human rights in the Congo." This is an exert from the bookIn the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in the Congo. The book goes on to state that the USA and others believed Motubu to be the "last line of defense" against the soviets, whom they feared would take power in the Congo. Foreign companies, which is what your question revolved around, funded Motubu along with the CIA because the previous leader, Lumumba, was a total communist who wanted to throw them all out. Incidentally, Lumumba was cheered on by the west as someone who would end the chaotic riots and militancy in the Congo and unite the country, but then he showed his true political alignment so ultimately they paid the Congolese to give him the royal boot.
What is the Congo called today?
There are currently 2 'Congo's . The larger, more southerly is what used to be Belgian Congo and is now Democratic Republic of Congo. To the northwest of this is the Republic of Congo, sometimes called Congo-Brazzaville.
What evils was dom afonso concerned about?
Dom Afonso was concerned with the corruption of the leaders that Portugal sent over to the Congo. He was concerned by their licentiousness and their inability to rule. Due to the incompetence of the Vassals sent over, the people of the Congo were starving. Not only were they starving but the soon to boom slave trade had just begin and he was facing depopulation.
What effects did the practices of the company owners have on the people of the Congo?
Congo was colonized by the Belgians, and in 1882, the International Association of the Congo was created as a company to govern the country. Native people were forced to work for the company under cruel and inhumane conditions.
