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Belgium’s King Philippe on Tuesday will begin a historic visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The six-day trip, at the invitation of President Felix Tshisekedi, has strong symbolic significance.
Belgium’s King Philippe on Tuesday will begin a historic visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The six-day trip, at the invitation of President Felix Tshisekedi, has strong symbolic significance. It is coming two years after Philippe expressed to the Congolese leader his “deepest regrets” for the “wounds” of colonisation.
The visit, the monarch’s first to DR Congo since ascending the throne in 2013, has been billed as a gesture of reconciliation. It was originally scheduled to take place in June 2020 to mark the DRC’s 60th anniversary of independence. But was rescheduled to 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic. It was further postponed to now because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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The sovereign will deliver a speech at Kinshasa on Wednesday during a ceremony with Tshisekedi at the Congolese parliament. He will also address students at the University of Lubumbashi in the south of the country on Friday. It is to be seen how the general public would react to King Philippe’s visit. As the erstwhile colonial power, Belgium is blamed for large-scale killings in the country. The King had publicly sought forgiveness for wounds of colonization that could have appeased the general public. It may be noted that many European ex-colonists like France, Portugal, Spain, and now Belgium are on an appeasing over-drive in countries in Africa.
