I cannot say here how many millions or billions Belgium has to pay, but one thing is certain: the Belgian government has the opportunity to say that it wants to fix what was done. Government Spending in Belgium averaged 18630.83 EUR Million from 1980 until 2022, reaching an all time high of 27582.00 EUR Million in the fourth quarter of 2022 and a record low of 9857.00 EUR Million in the first quarter of 1980. Estimates of the death toll caused by colonisation range from one to ten million. Corrections? Like a lot of people, I suppose I am a mixture of Belgian and Congolese. Gain a global perspective on the US and go beyond with curated news and analysis from 600 From the 1950s, a broad movement formed in Congo Belge to protest against Belgian foreign rule. According to the EuCham ranking the richest European country is Luxembourg with USD 90,790 per capita. Rigorous monetary reform aided Belgiums post-World War II recovery and expansion, particularly of the Flemish light manufacturing and chemical industries that developed rapidly in the north, and Belgium became one of the first European countries to reestablish a favourable balance of trade in the postwar world. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/place/Belgian-Congo, The Ultimate History Project - Belgian Congo, EHNE Digital Encyclopedia - Colonial Education in the Belgian Congo, University of Central Arkansas - Political Science - Belgian Congo (1908-1960). [20], Belgium's industry is concentrated mainly in the populous region of Flanders in the north, around Brussels and in the two biggest Walloon cities, Lige and Charleroi, along the sillon industriel. [19] Belgium's economy has capitalised on the country's central geographic location, and has a well-developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Leopold II tried mightily to conceal this abuse from the international public. The most deciding event in precipitating the war was the genocide in neighbouring Rwanda in 1994, which sparked a mass exodus of refugees known as the Great Lakes refugee crisis. He quickly disregarded all of his Berlin Conference guidelines and began to economically exploit the region's land and inhabitants. Marchal, the Belgian scholar, estimates that Leopold drew some 220 million francs (or $1.1 billion in todays dollars) in profits from the Congo during his lifetime. In southeast Congo, the Belgians discovered large ore deposits and exported copper, tropical wood, cotton, cocoa and coffee to Europe. Many slag heaps still surround the city. The second shift happened much later. With the expansion of domestic and commercial needs in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, increasing attention focused on problems of water quality and supply. Joseph Conrad set his popular novel Heart of Darkness in the Congo Free State and described European abuses. The economy of the region is now diversified, the most important centers are mechanical industries (aircraft engine and Spacecraft propulsion), space technology, information technology, biotechnology and also production of water, beer or chocolate. How much money did King Leopold make from the Congo? Standard Digital includes access to a wealth of global news, analysis and expert opinion. It has since developed a highly-developed transportation infrastructure made up of ports (most notably the Port of Antwerp), canals, railways, and highways, in order to integrate its industry with that of its neighbours. This colonial racism continued in everyday life until the middle of the 20th century. * Belgium is yet to return thousands of Congolese art works including statues, elephant ivory masks, manuscripts and musical instruments looted by Belgian and other European collectors, scientists and explorers during the colonial era. But while Belgium prospered from its African connection, Congo's story has been one of chaos and decline. Unemployment in Wallonia is mainly structural, while in Flanders it is cyclical. The economy of Belgium is varied and cannot be understood without taking the regional differences into account. The current countries of Rwanda and Burundi were once colonized by the Germans, who named the region Ruanda-Urundi. In the past, Lige was one of the most important steel-making centres in Europe. Is this a racist country? The trip was billed as a chance to recalibrate the relationship between the two countries after a dark colonial past. The lace made in Belgium has been internationally renowned for centuries. However, shortly after independence, there was a falling out between the independent government and Western powers, primarily the US and Belgium. Diplomatic talks and pressure from many quarters would later make Leopold II renounce his rule over the Free State of the Congo, and subsequently handing it over to the Belgium government, and then Congo was named the Belgian Congo. But people should ask themselves where all this fortune comes from? See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. We use However, thanks to Belgium's high personal savings rate, the Belgian Government financed the deficit from mainly domestic savings, minimizing the deleterious effects on the overall economy.[20]. The last Belgian union worth mentioning is the very small, but highly active anarchist union called the Vrije Bond. But he profited enormously from the Congos raw materials. The planted forests of the Ardennes and the Kempenland support Belgiums relatively small forest-products industry. Belgian Congo, French Congo Belge, former colony (coextensive with the present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo) in Africa, ruled by Belgium from 1908 until 1960. But my life is here, in Belgium. The man's name was Nsala and his wife and children had just been killed. Manufacturing is the major economic activity in the provinces of East Flanders, Limburg, and Hainaut. In my opinion, we should call this what it was - genocide. Belgian Congo, 1908-1960 . The broad debate alone can only be conducted in Belgian society alongside Congolese actors. In Brussels, Leopold left his mark in stone - in monuments and buildings. He took Congo as his own personal possession and made himself rich. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. The government has balanced the budget every year since, until 2009 where it ran a deficit of about $25 billion. The country has assembly plants for foreign automakers, as well as for foreign firms manufacturing heavy electrical goods. How much money did Belgium make from the Congo? The photo was taken in 1904 at a missionary outpost in Baringa, in what was then called the Congo Free State. The relentless pursuit of profits in the Congo by King Leopold II resulted in one of the worst levels of moral decadence for mankind. As of July 2012, however, the statistical unemployment rate in Brussels was 20.6%.[30]. Intensive cultivation is confined to gardens and small farms, which are usually smaller than 10 acres (4 hectares). In the mystery over what happened to DR Congo's leader, Laurent Kabila, many of the early facts were first confirmed by the Belgian Government. Zeebrugge and Ostend, the main fishing ports, send a modest fleet of trawlers to the North Sea fishing grounds. However, as nuclear reactors generate more than half of Belgiums electricity, the use of water for cooling in nuclear power stations is much more significant. Pixabay. Oats, rye, and potatoes are the chief crops; wheat, sugar beets, chicory, hops, flax, and ornamental plants (e.g., azaleas, roses, and begonias) also are grown in southwestern Flanders. Belgium's economy was immeasurably improved by the capture of Congo, says Pierre . The Free States concession system was soon copied by other colonial regimes, notably those in the neighbouring French Congo. Belgium now imports all its coal, which is needed for the steel industry and for domestic heating. No, but it would be the first step. In October 2021, the Belgian parliament set up a commission to deal with colonial injustice. The museum, in the Brussels suburb of Tervuren, was founded in 1897 by Leopold II at the height of colonialism. journalists in 50+ countries covering politics, business, innovation, trends and more. Mined since the 13th century, these coal reserves were instrumental in Belgiums industrialization during the 19th century. The third shift is King Philippes letter to President Felix Tshisekedi on 30 June 2020, the anniversary of Congolese independence. Firstly, Mobutu repeatedly pointed out Belgiums moral responsibility to the country resulting from colonial rule, especially in crisis situations. [24] The second biggest union is the socialist General Federation of Belgian Labour (ABVV-FGTB) which has a membership of more than 1.5million. The second stage is that it is absolutely necessary that children are taught the reality of what happened in Congo. But he gave the orders. But by the time Leopold was stopped, the damage was done. [citation needed] In 2009 Belgium suffered negative growth and increased unemployment, stemming from the worldwide banking crisis. Belgium is the world's largest producer of begonias, planting 60 million tubers per year. As a result, cumulative government debt reached 121% of GDP by the end of the 1980s. * As many as 10 million people are estimated to have died in Congo from killings, famine and disease . A rebellion broke out in several eastern districts in 1919 and was not suppressed until 1923. Sixty years after Congo gained its independence, the Belgian king has expressed his "deepest regrets" for the suffering his nation caused as a colonial power. In 2004 the port of Antwerp was the second largest European sea port by cargo volume, and the Antwerp freight railway station accounts for one-third of Belgian freight traffic. Accounts of atrocities reached London and Brussels - including one which described how Leopold's enforcers had collected baskets of severed hands to prove they had been doing their work. Updates? Bureaucrats and politicians see it every day as they whizz round the Schuman roundabout. Only a small percentage of the countrys active population engages in agriculture, and agricultural activity has continued to shrink, both in employment and in its contribution to the GDP. In the south a modest hydroelectric power industry has developed along fast-moving streams. How Much Did Belgium Steal From Congo? Starting in 1817, John Cockerill extensively developed the iron and steel industry. I think I would have to say yes. Because political associations were prohibited at the time, reformers organized into cultural clubs such as Abako, a Bakongo association formed in 1950. In addition, sands from the Kempenland supply the glass-manufacturing industry, and clays from the Borinage are used for pottery products and bricks. Belgium switched from the Belgian franc to the Euro as its currency after 1 January 2002. (2021, July 30). For many years Leopold II was widely known as a leader who defended Belgium's neutrality in the 1870-71 Franco-Prussian war and commissioned public works fit for a modern nation. The goal was to make negotiations on restitution possible. Diplomatic talks and pressure from many quarters would later make Leopold II renounce his . Others were looting the economy on an extravagant scale - even the embassy buildings in Japan were said to have been stolen. However, agricultural activity in Belgium centres primarily on livestock; dairy and meat products constitute more than two-thirds of the total farm value. Some historians refer to this as a genocide. Why? After only two months in power, Lumumba was deposed in September 1960. read more. The Belgian foreign minister broke the news that Mr Kabila had been shot, and the prime minister was quick to announce he would be sending troops to the region, although not to DR Congo itself. The first is when Joseph-Dsir Mobutu came to power in 1965. Marchal, the Belgian scholar, estimates that Leopold drew some 220 million francs (or $1.1 billion in today's dollars ) in profits from the Congo during his lifetime. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player. On January 1, 1999, Belgium also became a charter member of the European Monetary Union, paving the way for the introduction of the euro, which became the countrys sole currency in 2002, replacing the Belgian franc. The country has been a member of a variety of supranational organizations, including the Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU), the Benelux Economic Union, and the EU.
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