Patrice Lumumba : The Man Ahead Of His Time

We come back on the life of one of the most famous and important African nationalists, Patrice Emery Lumumba of the Democratic Republic of Congo. A born orator, charismatic figure and highly intelligent, Lumumba is an iconic figure to Africans and beyond. Respected by an entire continent, Lumumba took on the Belgian colonial system put in place over decades and dismantled it, alongside with his comrades, and led Congo to a long difficult road to independence. In this podcast, we review his life, struggles, eventual arrest and assassination. We discover how the plot to kill him was way bigger than Congo, and was orchestrated by the highest officials of countries like Belgium, France, Britain and the USA. We also see how far they went to protect their dirty secret, by going as far as assassinating the Secretary General of the United Nations Organization. Find out in this week's podcast of Colonialism and it's effects on modern day Africa.

Patrice Lumumba on his first day of office, June 1960

Lumumba at the All-African People's Conference in 1958

Lumumba during his famous “Le Peuple Avant Tout” Speech in 1960

Lumumba arrested by Mobutu's forces in his way to Stanleyville (Kisangani)

The last picture of Lumumba, a few days before he was assassinated, alongside Mpolo, his associate. 1960

A statue of Lumumba in Kinshasa. Father of Belgian independence and African Nationalists