Joseph Kasa-Vubu, ABAKO, and Performances of Kongo Nationalism in the Independence of Congo

Abstract

When most people think about the Belgian Congo and its path to independence on June 30, 1960, the figure that most frequently comes to mind is that of Patrice Lumumba and his strategy of uniting people across different ethnic groups. While Lumumba’s contributions have been well documented and recognized, this essay argues that the Kongo ethnic association–turned–political party, ABAKO (Association des BaKongo), and its leader Joseph Kasa-Vubu, were the driving force behind the independence movement in colonial Belgian Congo. ABAKO, however, used a completely different approach that successfully privileged ethnic nationalism, demonstrating that ideas of ethnic identity were often more important than a burgeoning national identity. Through the application of a performative analysis to three key events—the ABAKO countermanifesto of 1956; the Léopoldville rebellion of January, 1959; and the civil disobedience campaign advocating for an autonomous Kongo state in mid-1959—the author shows that members of ABAKO and its leadership effectively used performances of ethnic and territorial nationalism to greatly impact and lead the movement for Congolese independence.