Editing Belgian Congo (section)

===Political organisation===
[[File:Joseph Kasa-Vubu at the Belgo-Congolese Round Table Conference.jpg|thumb|upright|right|[[Joseph Kasa-Vubu]], leader of ABAKO and the first democratically elected President of the [[Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)]]]]
[[File:Patrice Lumumba, 1960.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Patrice Lumumba]], first democratically elected Prime Minister of the [[Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)]]]]
The participation of Congolese people in the [[Second World War]] and news of changes in other colonies resulted in their organising to gain more power. As a result of the inability of the colonial government to introduce radical and credible changes, the Congolese elites began to organise themselves socially and soon also politically. In the 1950s, two markedly different forms of nationalism arose among the Congolese elites.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}} The nationalist movement—to which the Belgian authorities, to some degree, turned a blind eye—promoted [[territorial nationalism]], wherein the Belgian Congo would become one politically united state after independence.

In opposition to this was the ethno-religious and regional nationalism that took hold in the [[Bakongo]] territories of the west coast, [[Kasai region|Kasai]] and [[Katanga Province|Katanga]].{{citation needed|date=January 2024}} The first political organisations were of the latter type. [[ABAKO]], founded in 1950 as the ''Association culturelle des Bakongo'' and headed by [[Joseph Kasa-Vubu]], was initially a cultural association that soon turned political. From the mid-1950s, it became a vocal opponent of Belgian colonial rule. Additionally, the organization continued to serve as the major ethno-religious organization for the Bakongo and became closely intertwined with the [[Kimbanguist Church]], which was extremely popular in the lower Congo.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

In 1955, Belgian professor [[Antoine van Bilsen]] published a treatise called ''Thirty Year Plan for the Political Emancipation of Belgian Africa''.<ref>Gerard-Libois, Jules (1989), "Vers l'Indépendance: une accélération imprévue", In ''Congo-Zaïre'', Brussels: GRIP, pp. 43–56.</ref> The timetable called for the gradual emancipation of the Congo over a 30-year period—the time Van Bilsen expected it would take to create an educated elite who could replace the Belgians in positions of power. The Belgian government and many of the ''évolués'' were suspicious of the plan—the former because it meant eventually giving up the Congo, and the latter because Belgium would continue to rule for another three decades. A group of [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] ''évolués'' responded positively to the plan with a moderate manifesto in a Congolese journal called ''Conscience Africaine''; they raised issues as to the extent of Congolese participation.<ref>Kalulambi Pongo, Martin (2009), "Le manifeste 'Conscience africaine: genèse, influences et réactions", In Tousignant, Nathalie (ed.), ''Le manifeste Conscience africaine, 1956'', Brussels: Facultés Universitaires Saint-Louis, pp. 59–81.</ref>

In 1957, by way of experiment, the colonial government organised the first municipal elections in three urban centres (Léopoldville, Elisabethville and Jadotville), in which Congolese people were allowed to stand for office and cast their vote. Events in 1957–58 led to a sudden acceleration in the demands for political emancipation. The independence of [[Ghana]] in 1957 and [[Charles De Gaulle|President De Gaulle's]] August 1958 visit to [[Brazzaville]], the capital of the [[French Congo]], on the other side of the Congo river to Léopoldville, in which he promised [[French Fifth Republic|France]]'s African colonies the free choice between a continued association with France or full independence, aroused ambitions in the Congo. The World Exhibition organised in [[Brussels]] in 1958 ([[Expo 58]]) proved another eye-opener for many Congolese leaders, who were allowed to travel to Belgium for the first time.<ref>Aziza Etambala, Zana (2008), ''De teloorgang van een modelkolonie, Belgisch Congo 1958–1960'', Leuven: Acco, pp. 105–110.</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://radishmag.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/1957-12-too-late-too-little.pdf |title=Belgian Congo: Too Late, Too Little? |date=23 December 1957 |magazine=Time |access-date=2017-10-28 |language=en-US |issn=0040-781X |via=Radishmag |archive-date=16 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141216125731/https://radishmag.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/1957-12-too-late-too-little.pdf |url-status=live }}
* {{cite magazine |date=December 23, 1957 |title=Belgian Congo: Too Late, Too Little? |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,936763,00.html |magazine=Time |access-date=28 October 2017 |archive-date=1 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170501001542/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,936763,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1958, the demands for independence radicalised quickly and gained momentum. A key role was played by the ''[[Mouvement National Congolais]]'' (MNC). First set up in 1956, the MNC was established in October 1958 as a national political party that supported the goal of a unitary and centralised Congolese nation. Its most influential leader was the charismatic [[Patrice Lumumba]]. In 1959, an internal split was precipitated by [[Albert Kalonji]] and other MNC leaders who favoured a more moderate political stance (the splinter group was deemed [[Mouvement National Congolais-Kalonji]]). Despite the organisational divergence of the party, Lumumba's leftist faction (now the [[Mouvement National Congolais-Lumumba]]) and the MNC collectively had established themselves as by far the most important and influential party in the Belgian Congo. Belgium vehemently opposed Lumumba's leftist views and had grave concerns about the status of their financial interests should Lumumba's MNC gain power.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}