The Congo Crisis | Understanding Katanga's Attempted Secession

The Congo Crisis was a key moment in the development of modern attitudes towards secession. In 1960, the province of Katanga unsuccessfully tried to break away from the newly independent Republic of the Congo. (Now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo.) In this video, I explore why its effort to secede failed and why the consequences of this are still felt by independence movements around the world to this very day.

Hello and welcome! My name is James Ker-Lindsay. Here I take an informed look at International Relations with a focus on territorial conflicts, secession, independence movements and new countries. If you like what you see, please do subscribe. If you want more, including exclusive content and benefits, consider becoming a channel member. Many thanks!

The Congo Crisis (1960-63) has been largely forgotten. And yet it was profoundly important in terms of shaping modern attitudes towards secession. Katanga's attempt to break away from the Republic of the Congo effectively marked the moment when the international community took a firm stance against unilateral attempts to declare independence. However, as is shown, this was only possible because of a very unusual convergence of interests between the two Cold War Super Powers, the United States and the Soviet Union. More to the point, the Congo Crisis galvanised opinion amongst the world's newly independent post-colonial countries. As a result, the international community's strong aversion to secession in the modern era became cemented at this point.

On a separate note, the Congo Crisis also had a profound affect of the United Nations. It represented a rare example of when a UN peacekeeping mission (ONUC) became directly involved in fighting as a partisan actor. Some of the events covered in this video were dramatised in the 2016 Netflix film, 'Siege of Jadotville', which looks at how a small unit of the Irish Army became under heavy attack during the Congo Crisis and Katanga's secession.

I am also extremely grateful to my friend and colleague Mikulas Fabry. This video is based on a section of a book we are currently completing. (Link below.)

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KEYWORDS

#CongoCrisis #Katanga #Congo
#InternationalPolitics #InternationalRelations
#Secession #Statehood #Independence
#InternationalLaw #InternationalHistory
#SiegeofJadotville #DemocraticRepublicoftheCongo

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[theconqueringram]

The Congo Crisis, from how you explained it, sounded like one of the most significant events in the 20th century and not a lot of people seem to talk about it.

[bezimiennyziemniak]

So, that's the moment when UN stopped caring about self self-determination?

[Ice-lwym]

I am a Congolese from Katanga region,

Thank you for the video and the explanation.

Unfortunately the KATANGA state didn’t last longer only 2 years and 6 months,
It was the 10 July if I’m not wrong that the KATANGA state was declared by Moise TSHOMBE, everything was ready a constitution, currency and a national anthem…it was a federal state, Haut-Katanga, haut-lomami, Tanganyika and Lualaba, with the capital Elisabethville (Lubumbashi),

Economically the state was supported by union minière du haut Katanga a company(today GECAMINE) the biggest mining company in Congo, which extract especially cobalt and copper,

According to what my grandparents told me it’s was really a great time and people were really happy by that time…

But the Katanga state didn’t have the support of the UN,

Even today we see Congo as a failed state…99% will be in favor of a secession…

[krishnakarishma]

This was explained so well. Thank you!!! Better than any other video I've watched

[Lettersfromhome]

Lumumba was never ‘pro-Soviet’. He turned to Russia after his requests were rejected by Washington.

[davidlandsnes]

So in a way, the international community under the auspices of the UN supported Dem. Congo (Leopoldville, now Kinshasa) as the successor to the Belgian Congo, which itself was a colonial amalgamation of ethnolinguistic groups. With such an approach, the precedent set forth by the UN in some way legitimizes the century-old and, in some cases, arbitrary construction of colonial entities. Has there been a concerted effort by the UN to propose multiple new independent entities from a single colonial entity based more upon existing ethnolinguistic/cultural similarities or precolonial designations?

[aliciamomat]

Katangese girl here🤚 we will give anything to be independent once again. 🤗

[clefabletable]

Really good video, studying the secession of Katanga in school and this is the first video I've found that has explained it so clearly and the effects it had internationally.

[esayasalemu]

It is a great summary of the conflict. Lumuba wasn’t pro Soviet though; he just wanted a meaningful independence from the most brutal Belgian colonialists and their western allies. The US and the British along with the Belgian colonists worked from day one to undermine his government and finally to depose and kill him. He turned to the Soviets only after the US rejected his plea for help against the greedy and brutal Belgian colonialists for sending their barbaric army to Congo to continue their exploitation of the country even after independence.

[zi]

You basically gave me the answers to this one slide presentation I have to make for world history. Thank you!!!

[syedabeenazaidi]

I just loved it...the way it is explained and carried or linked to other important hindsides and issues...great work

[Muber]

Thank you for the enriching information

[toutestvanite]

As a Katangese, we’ve never given up on statehood and self-determination. Our future was compromised by the United Nations which forced us back into an artificial state and a continuation of the colonial enterprise which commenced under King Leopold II.

[mirrorblue]

Very straight forward and well reasoned presentation - thanks.

[JamesKerLindsay]

Thanks for watching. Although the Congo Crisis has now been largely forgotten, it has had a huge impact on how the international community responds to secession. Understanding what happened with Katanga's secession helps to explain why so many groups and territories seeking independence face such an uphill task.

[MrRedsjack]

UN succefully ensuring that katanga would become a basket case.
UN is a joke.

[makoriasati]

To end various conflicts in Africa we must unite!
I come from Kenya, recently I visited Ghana. Each time I found myself speaking Kiswahili to the people I met and each time they reminded me "speak the language we understand" Africa is one country and we must form a federation, before the year 2030. Already we have Africa free trade and Visa free Africa for all Africans. External Visas should only apply to citizens whose countries require Africans to have Visas like Europe and Chicano. This is the time to honour Africa's founding fathers Marcus Garvey and Kwame Nkrumah, his book "Africa Must Unite" should be a must read at middle schools, throughout the African World.
We should immediately unite in foreign affairs, single army and single currency. It requires each country's parliament to ratify the same.

[michaelstone]

Another thing you could have mentioned was that Lumumba was actually taken to Katanga to be assassinated.

[skeletonkeysproductionskp]

Excellent, this video has helped me with my research for "What if Biafra Became Independent?" where I use the example of Katanga to explain why the international community had a precedent for how they dealt with secessionist movements.

[mannfred]

thank you for this video you really helped me with my history class presentation!