Victims or Burdens?: Angolan Refugees and Humanitarian Aid Organizations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1961-1963

Abstract

The onset of the Angolan war of independence in 1961 set off a humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo. By the summer of 1962, the number of Angolans refugees rose to nearly 150,000. The UN High Commission for Refugees [Caritas], the League of Red Cross Societies [LRCS], the Catholic charity Caritas, and Protestant church aid groups all provided aid to Angolans. However, the UNHCR and LRCS quickly viewed the Angolans as overly dependent on humanitarian assistance. Echoing colonial anxieties about unsettled African populations, secular and Catholic organizations tried to resettle refugees. UNHCR and LCRS staff blamed Angolan nationalist leaders for coercing refugees to stay in exile rather than return to their homeland, ignoring how refugees themselves described how Portuguese troops had indiscriminately tortured and murdered civilians. Protestant aid groups actively collaborated with the FNLA Angolan rebel movement, to the displeasure of other aid organizations who contended the Protestants violated the humanitarian ideal of neutrality. This case indicates tensions between humanitarian organizations that considered refugees as a burden in need of continued oversight with others who considered the Angolans as victims of colonialism deserving of help.