By Noah Fishman

The United Nations Historical Security Council of 1961 read a letter to Secretary-General Hammarskjöld, where Congolese President Kasa-Vubu stated that Special Representative of the Congo Rajeshwar Dayal Dayal acted inappropriately and displayed bias while dealing with the forces supporting Patrice Lumumba. Kasa-Vubu requested that pro-Lumumba rebels be disarmed by the United Nations and said only once that is done and Mr. Dayal is removed from power will the Congo collaborate. President Kasa-Vubu continued, saying that this bias extended to the United Nations as a whole, specifically that the United Nations allowed military action to take place in Stanleyville. In Northern Katanga UN troops are flowing into Northern Katanga at greater numbers to prevent civil war, leading to the injury of three Swedish soldiers in a firefight with Baluba tribesmen in support of Lumumba and the Stanleyville government.

The Representative of Katanga stressed the region’s willingness to cooperate with the United Nations, but their strong desire to be left alone. Katanga does not want to be part of the Congo nor Belgium, but wants independence and believes they can keep up this fight for quite some time, though Katanga avoided giving a concrete number or measure when Representative Claire Guenther of China asked how long they would be able to maintain the fight with their current forces. Instead the Representative of Katanga focused on “doing what is necessary” to defend their right to exist for now and forever.

“We would love to have the fighting stop,” said the Representative of Katanga. “We would gladly accept any aid you have to offer but we can happily distribute the aid to people who need it.”

When asked about seeding resources to the Congo, Katanga maintained their position of openness to conversation but bolstering their desire for sovereignty. “I believe we could talk with them about it, but it is our land so we would control the resources within it.”

Following this session, it was discovered that Patrice Lamumba and his two ministers imprisoned alongside him were brutally beaten while being transferred to Katanga, and this report was confirmed by a Swedish United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) officer stationed at the Elisabethville airport. In reaction to this realization, France wrote to Secretary-General Hammarskjöld requesting him to send a representative to Kasa-Vubu and the Mobutu government as well as the Katangan government to see if their relationship has changed, and to confirm Lamumbas health and wellness. Despite this effort, France is not confident this will pay off.

“There is probably going to be a show of bad faith, they might say he’s ok, or we’re not together,” said Representative Harrison Rothschild of France. “I don’t exactly trust that there will be the most upfront and honest approach. They are closer than they claim, and the Katunga group is not as peaceful as they claim.”