African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1390 Autonomy
The colonial foundation of Congo is not as good as that of Belgium, but it is more stable. Although the local economy of Belgium is good now, the living standards of the people are not much better.

This resulted in Congo absorbing more people than going to Belgium.

However, the Belgian government's current headache is that due to the impact of the war, the local Congolese government has naturally developed ambitions.

While war refugees in Congo were deciding whether to stay or return to their homeland after the epidemic was completely over, the Belgian Parliament was also discussing the Congo colony.

One member of parliament said: "During the war, because the territory was threatened by war, the Congolese local government actually broke away from the control of the Belgian mainland, and this period lasted for nearly five years."

"At the same time, in the later stages of the war, due to the exchange of interests, the central government promised a lot of benefits and rights to the Congolese region, which increased Congo's tendency to secede from Belgium."

"This has increased the centrifugal force in Congo. Over the years, with the help of Belgium, Congo has achieved amazing economic achievements, but tax revenue has not increased much compared to before the war. This is unimaginable. The kingdom should put Congo back to its rightful place."

The congressman's proposal was immediately opposed by Congolese representative Hamburger: "Congressman Rocas, your words are totally unreasonable. During the war, Congo provided a lot of help to the country. Not only did we provide a lot of strategic materials, but we also contributed a lot to the Kingdom's persistence until the end of the war. Your remarks are undoubtedly a contempt for Congo."

"The rights we have gained in Congo are the result of our previous efforts. If the Kingdom really treats Congo according to your remarks, it will undoubtedly cause great harm to more than 1.3 million Congolese people."

"Excuse me, Senator Rocas, can you bear the wrath of more than 1.3 million Congolese people? This behavior of crossing the river and destroying the bridge is undoubtedly extremely shameless!"

Of course, it is mainly some local officials in Congo who want to secede from Belgium. But for most ordinary people, as long as Belgium treats everyone equally, whether to stay in Belgium will not be affected at all. There is no doubt that the Belgian government itself may not be able to do this.

Today the world’s colonial system is on the brink of collapse, but precisely because this system still exists, the colonies are still naturally inferior.

However, some colonies that have developed rapidly and have a certain degree of autonomy have begun to strive for greater rights from the colonial power. In addition to Congo, Britain's colonies of Canada and Australia are typical examples.

Congressman Rocas replied: "Mr. Hamburg, I have no intention of offending the people of the Congolese colony, but the development of Congo itself was successfully promoted by the local people. You naturally cannot just enjoy the benefits brought to you by the kingdom without taking corresponding responsibilities."

Hamberg was not fooled by Rocas's argument. He raised his voice and said to the people in the parliament: "The achievements we have made in Congo today are indeed helped by local companies and immigrants."

"But it is more due to the superior natural geographical conditions than Congo and the hard work of the people in our Congolese territory."

"Today, the population of Congo exceeds one million, which is close to 20% of the mainland. There is no doubt that these 20% of Belgian citizens are an existence that the kingdom cannot ignore. They have made great contributions to the development of the empire."

"Before 1910, more than percent of Congo's profits were taken home each year, including taxes and corporate income, a higher proportion than anywhere else in the empire."

"So, I think the Congolese people should now enjoy the same treatment as local people, rather than unfair treatment or even discrimination."

What Hamburg said was true, but if you look deeper, Congo's contribution to Belgium is not as high as imagined.

Because during the long period of time that the Congo colony existed, the local economic benefits were not high. After all, Congo was pitifully small in size at the time. Although it had a large amount of mineral resources, most of the profits went into the royal family, or the pocket of Leopold II.

The Belgian government officially took over the Congo colony after 1909, but soon thereafter, Belgium itself was mired in the quagmire of war and was unable to take care of the isolated Congo colony.

Not to mention making huge profits from Congo, many local people and companies have fled to Congo for refuge, further promoting the development of Congo's economy.

Of course, the actual fundamental reason for the dispute between Hamberg and Rocas is for practical interests. In Congo, a local interest group has been formed that even Belgium cannot ignore. Moreover, the Belgian government has no good means of checks and balances on this newly formed interest group. This is why Congo is so tough in the face of its own interests.

Economically, Congo now has the ability to develop independently from Belgium. Moreover, with East Africa behind it and close to the South American and West African markets, if Congo separates from Belgium, it will probably do very well.

It is inevitable that economic development will further promote the demands of local Congolese forces for political status.

Those colonies that do not want to break away from their mother country generally have some unspeakable secrets, such as Britain's South African colonies.

The biggest reason why the South African colonies did not seek political equality or even independence like Canada and Australia was that South Africa needed Britain's military protection.

The two major ethnic groups in South Africa, the British and the Boers, have never relaxed their vigilance against East Africa due to the impact of the South African War in the last century.

Moreover, on the economic level, South Africa today does not have the independence it had in the past. In the past, South Africa had rich mineral resources in the northwest region and its economy was developing very well.

However, in this time and space, South Africa's main mineral deposits are basically occupied by East Africa. As a result, the current economy of the South African colony basically relies on Cape Town's geographical location, the development of shipping, commerce and a small amount of agriculture.

Judging from the current situation, the future development prospects of the South African colonies may not be much higher than the potential of the Congo colonies.

Finally, on the military level, Belgium has never been a military power, and even if Belgium has the military capability to interfere in Congo, it does not have the courage to try. In addition to Congo, the impact on East Africa cannot be ignored.

As a regional hegemon, East Africa naturally cannot tolerate foreign forces launching a war on its doorstep without its permission.

Congo is surrounded by East Africa on three sides. It is itself an important component of East Africa's national defense and security. Even in military and diplomacy, East Africa has absolute influence on Congo, which even its suzerain Belgium is powerless to change.

For example, East Africa has military access rights and garrisons in Congo, the main railway lines in Congo are connected to the East African railway, and the waters of Congo are also patrolled and free passage areas for the East African Navy, etc. From these perspectives, it is better to say that Congo is a common colony of East Africa and Belgium rather than a colony of Belgium. However, the good news is that the attitudes of the two colonial powers towards Congo are quite good.

This makes Congo's position somewhat similar to that of Canada, as it can play both sides between the UK and the US. The difference is that Congo's size is too small compared to Canada.

As for Congo, it is more inclined to strengthen cooperation with Belgium between East Africa and Belgium. Of course, this is mainly to maintain Congo's special status today. If it really throws itself into the arms of East Africa, many of Congo's benefits will certainly disappear.

Therefore, the Congolese interest groups represented by Hamberg are arguing in the Belgian Parliament in essence to seek more benefits. It is impossible for them to really break away from Belgium. At least at this stage, maintaining the status quo is in the best interests of Congo.

Among the three countries, the most embarrassed is the Belgian government. After suffering heavy losses in World War I, the Belgian government is now unable to give up Congo as a stable source of financial resources, so Congo has taken the initiative.

So, when the Congolese representatives and local parliamentarians were arguing in the parliament, the current King of Belgium, Albert I, stepped down and said, "Okay, both of you stop arguing. Congo is an inseparable part of Belgium. This is unshakable."

“So, Belgium will naturally treat Congo fairly and justly, just like it treats its own family, so Mr. Hamberg should not mind the radical remarks made by Councillor Rocas.”

"However, Mr. Hamburg, you should also understand the difficulties faced by your own country. Belgium has experienced five years of devastation during the World War, so now Belgium needs Congo to contribute to the recovery of its economy. This is also a reasonable request. We will not underestimate the efforts and contributions made by Congo."

King Albert I was the nephew of Leopold II and had visited the Congo colony before he ascended the throne.

In 1901, Albert I visited Congo on behalf of Leopold II, but at that time Congo was just an insignificant colony for Belgium.

Of course, this was directed at the Belgian government, not the royal family. At that time, Congo had become the money bag of Leopold II, but the output of Congo could only benefit Leopold II alone.

With the death of Leopold II, his heir Albert I naturally took over most of his uncle's assets in Congo.

Therefore, Albert I currently has a large share of the interests in the Congo colony. Therefore, whether for personal or national interests, Albert I would never allow Congo to become independent under his rule.

Hamburg was quite respectful of Albert I. He said: "Your Majesty, we Congolese people are naturally unwilling to separate from Belgium easily, but the premise of all this is that some people in Belgium should face up to the fact that we Congolese people are not a vassal of Belgium."

Albert I consoled him, saying, "Of course, Mr. Hamburg. Personally, I have visited Congo before. It is indeed a rapidly developing and vibrant land. Of course, the most important thing is that most of the residents of Congo are Belgian immigrants, so it is not an exaggeration to say that blood is thicker than water."

“So in terms of external communication and attitude, the local area and Congo should work together to make progress together and speak with one voice, so as to promote common progress for everyone.”

Subsequently, the Belgian government headed by Albert I resumed communication with Congolese representatives on Congo's economic and political rights.

After a period of negotiations, Congo "finally" chose to continue to remain in Belgium. However, the Belgian government also granted Congo the status of an overseas autonomous territory, initially getting rid of its colonial status.

The Congolese local government has gained more autonomous rights, such as enacting local laws, formulating economic policies, and having more autonomy in foreign exchanges.

……

The Belgian government's talks with Congo did not mean the end of the matter in April 1922.

The East African government sent personnel to bring in the Belgian government and the Congolese autonomous government for another round of negotiations on economic cooperation.

The content of this negotiation was to establish Congo as a free trade zone between Belgium and East Africa, and at the same time promote the use of the Rhine guilder in Belgium and Congo, especially in Congo, where the Rhine guilder became the legal currency of the Congolese Autonomous Territory with the same status as the Belgian franc.

The internationalization of the East African Rhine Shield naturally started from the surrounding countries and regions, and the geographical location of the Congo colony destined it to become one of the first targets in East Africa.

In addition to Congo, Darfur in North Africa, the Kingdom of South Germany in West Africa, Paraguay in South America, etc. are the first batch of non-East African territorial pilot areas. However, Darfur is somewhat special. It is actually a colony of East Africa, but it is an independent country in name.

However, due to its geographical location, Congo is destined to be unable to escape the influence of East Africa. Moreover, according to the estimates of the East African government, Congo and its suzerain Belgium do not have the courage to reject East Africa.

However, Congo and Belgium obviously cannot be confused, so the issue of economic cooperation with Belgium and the negotiations on economic cooperation in Congo are separate.

East Africa also attaches great importance to Belgium. Under the overall plan of the United Kingdom to consciously hinder the exchanges and contacts between East Africa and Europe, the exchanges and cooperation between East Africa and Europe will naturally be affected, especially the Suez Canal and Gibraltar, the two straits controlled by the United Kingdom.

Belgium is located on the Atlantic coast, so its cooperation with East Africa will not be greatly affected. Moreover, Belgium's special geographical location makes it play an important role in the entire Western European region.

Economically, Belgium is one of the important channels for trade between East Africa, France and Germany. This is especially true for Belgium's economic ties with France. A large part of Belgium's steel production capacity is consumed by France.

Therefore, by reaching cooperation with Belgium in the economic field, it will be helpful to further strengthen the influence of East Africa's economy on Europe. Belgium itself has a good economy and is considered a high-quality market, which is also coveted by East Africa.

However, Belgium is located in a place surrounded by wars, so the diplomacy of East Africa and Belgium is also vulnerable to interference from Britain, France and Germany. However, the expansion of the economic scope of any country will offend people. As a member of the imperialist countries, East Africa is itself a competitor of other major powers, so East Africa does not worry about interference from other countries.

On the contrary, because of Belgium's special geographical location, it is located between the three major European powers of Britain, France and Germany. If East Africa can strengthen its influence in Belgium, it will be beneficial for East Africa to seize the initiative in the competition with Britain, France and Germany.

(End of this chapter)