Congo

A Tension Point Between East and West

Abstract

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, known as Zaire between 1971 and 1997, is the third largest country in Africa, with a population of approximately fifty-five million, and is very rich in natural resources (copper, hydroelectric power, citrus fruits, precious metals, gemstones, heavy metals, rare earths, etc.). The vast majority of its citizens are still extremely poor as a result of the fact that over the past decades the country has been plundered and destroyed by the dictator-turned-president Mobutu Sese Seko (1965–1997) and his corrupt environment (kleptocracy), then the civil war that led to the president's downfall, and finally the first war on a continental scale in Africa—and the diseases, deprivation, and hunger that accompany them—have only increased the suffering, with an estimated three million victims since 1998.