During the reign of Leopold II from 1865 to 1909, brutal policies were pursued in the Belgian colonies in Africa, and some historians claim that millions of Africans were killed, maimed or died of diseases in the personal plantations of Leopold II in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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In a letter to the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Felix Chisekedi, Philip deeply regretted the transgressions of the past, the pain of which is exacerbated by the discrimination that is all too common in our societies.
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The 60-year-old king also apologized for “suffering and humiliation” after the end of Leopold II’s reign.
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The Democratic Republic of Congo is celebrating its 60th anniversary today since independence, but the celebrations have been canceled due to a new coronavirus pandemic.
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Chisekedi, the fifth president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, said on the eve of the anniversary of independence that 60 years later, the government is still trying to save the country from instability and poverty.
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The brutal exploitation of the former Central African colonies in Belgium has long been a sensitive issue,
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but the protests, under the pretext of the death of the black George Floid during a police arrest operation on May 25 in the United States, raised these issues. During the protests, several statues representing the past of Belgian colonialism were damaged, including the monuments of Leopold II.
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