Le système de corvée et de terreur du caoutchouc en État indépendant du Congo (1885-1908)

The corvée system and rubber terror in the Congo Free State (1885-1908)

Abstract

        This study explores the system of forced labor and the brutal rubber exploitation imposed by King Leopold II of Belgium in the Congo Free State –modern day Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly known as Zaire, between 1885 and 1908. While the official goal was to develop the rubber experts, the reality on the ground was marked by extreme violence. Congolese workers were forcibly recruited, enslaved and made to harvest rubber under inhumane conditions; failure to meet quotas often led to horrifies punishments, including hands amputation, all under the authority and whims of Congo Free State officer, by turning the Congo into his personal economic venture. Leopold II established monopolistic policies and enacted laws that transformed the entire region into a private plantation for the benefit of the royal authority. Beginning in 1892, the king implemented a system of compulsory labor that would later become known as the "rubber terror". This system caused the deaths and mutilation of millions of Congolese at the turn of the 20th century.

      The objective of this study is to shed light on, King Leopold II’s responsibility and to confirm the tragic accusations, long denied, concerning the fate of some ten million Congolese, who were either deliberately killed or forced to work by a private army acting under the king’s authority.

       Based on this data, the study aims to address the research question: How did the horrors of Belgian rubber exploitation in the Congo unfold? To answer this, it is important to explore the following secondary questions: How did Leopold II, King of the Belgians, seize control of the Congo Basin and establish the Congo Free State as his private property? What is meant by the term "rubber terror?" And what means were employed to carry out this exploitation?        The methodology used in this study is the historical method, which relies on the narration and analysis of events, their sequencing, and their connection to the historical context.              The most important conclusion we reached is that the Congo Free State came to end, giving way to a new phase of Belgian colonialism. The crimes committed under King Leopold II were exposed through the efforts of Protestant missionaries, traders, and journalists, who reported on the atrocities taking place in the region. Their testimonies and writings drew the attention of international public opinion, which demanded an investigation into the events occurring in the Congo.