Blackwell Reference Online

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With the exit of “Marshal” Mobutu Sese Seko from the presidency of former-Zaire in May 1997, and the immediate ascendancy of the leader of the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (ADFLC), Joseph-Desire Kabila, the social and political instability that marked Congo's independence era from Belgium in June 1960 persisted even more intensely. Various protests and uprisings in the Congo between 1998 and 2002 have been called the Second Congo War or Africa's World War. Eight African nations (Angola, Burundi, Chad, Namibia, Rwanda, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe) were directly involved, with an estimated 30 armed groups at war in the Congo. The number of recorded casualties made the conflict the deadliest global altercation since World War II. Although the conflict officially ended with the signing of the Sun City Agreement in South Africa in April 2002, avoidable cases of malnutrition and disease arising from intermittent clashes have often led to the deaths of hundreds of Congolese daily. The post-Mobutu altercations in the Congo are estimated to have cost well over 5 million human lives. On August 2, 1998 an insurgency targeted at the overthrow of President Kabila was championed by the Banyamulenge from eastern Congo. From mid-August 1998 the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) emerged as the platform for advancement of further rebellions. The RCD quickly assumed ... log in or subscribe to read full text