_ By B. TAFESSE

: Once again Zaire is in a state of
instability. The essence of this in-
Stability lies in the contradictions

f neo-colonial Mobutu re-
| Sime that is still in power. In fact,

¢ history of the struggle in Zaire
eh back to the colonial days

Nder the despotic rule of King
. pold of Belgium, when Zaire
ne Called the Congo. It was only

Uch later after independence

fat Mobutu changed the name of

Country to Zaire.

ener Twain, the great Ameri-
oa wniter, wrote about the brutal
=: Onization of the Congo and the
“Uppression of the people’s resis-
te © by the most atrocious
tio a — the physical decapita-
an of some and the enslavement
Tw destruction of others. Mark
, Vain’s King Leopold’s Sol-
Ud is a historic record of the
oo colonization of the
omBe by King Leopold and the

Ppression and exploitation of the

ngolese.

eau today is ‘tindependent”’
ae but with all the vestiges of
Onialism bolstered by a

Speakers
report on
NY meet

time ONTO — For the first
Since the United Nations
poSe Session on Disarmament
“Tesid its doors, Toronto area
: ees il be able to hear first
: ports on supportive ac-
ae pee in ay York and in
a ackin the
Ate campaign for disar-
for eee and related campaigns
an €velopment, and against ra-
M and neo-colonialism.

-\ public meeting on June 21.at
es ‘anforth Library, 701 Pape
right at hear reports from civil
aor oe Charles Roach and
Ton Niversity’s Prof. Lee
ch, who attended the World

E aay Council Conference on the

se: ication of Racism held in

Eland in May. Other Cana-

a Peaecipants will be reporting
Ae World Peace Council in-

peel seminars in New York
is g the UN Special Session on
pee een

mn May 27-28 and again on
apne the WPC held seminars,
~qic lst, attended by nine Cana-
dey 3 Considered the questions of
€lopment and peace, and
— and the eradication of

Cism.,

— second was held in two
d Ons, one of trade unionists
ae of parliamentarians. Jim

rani of United Auto

\ ers local 707 (Ford, Oakvil-

hae on disarmament and

- The parliamentarians from

tan ada were from Quebec, On-
© and British Columbia..

neo-colonial relationship which
Mobutu finds much in his per-
sonal interest. It is almost as if
Zaire is the personal colony of
Mobutu under the indirect rule of
the old colonialists. Thus, the
current crisis in Zaire is intrin-
sically the crisis of the Mobutu
regime and the neo-colonial
system. -
Shaba and the CPLF
The world remembers how the
Congolese liberation struggle in
the early 1960s, under the revolu-
tionary leadership of Patrice
Lumumba was suppressed and
Lumumba _ himself assassinated
by imperialism. Mobutu, who
was a sergeant in the
Belgian colonial army, under
suspicious circumstances, had
become a colonel of the army and
a collaborator with Belgium, the
USA, and France in their aggres-
sive drive to overthrow the
Lumumba government and install
a regime suitable to them. In the
meantime, the same colonial
powers organized a movement for
the secession of Shaba, then
known as Katanga, under Moise
Tshombe. Given Lumumba’s de-
dication to true independence for
the Congo, and his unwillingness
to sell out to the imperialist
monopolies, Belgium, the USA,
and France had decided to carve
out the mineral-rich Katanga,
facilitate destabilization, and
overthrow Lumumba.
Lumumba was killed, his pat-
riotic forces suppressed — some
were killed and others escaped,
but with the relentless struggle of
progressive Africa and others
Moise Tshombe’s secessionist
movement was liquidated.
Zaire’s territorial integrity was
saved, but her leadership, passed
from Kassavubu, and Adoula, to
Joseph Mobutu, all colonial
agents and bitter opponents of the
Liberation struggle. After
Mobutu consolidated his power,
he proclaimed a sham amnesty to
all Lumumbist forces in Congo
Brazzaville and other African
countries and committed further
murders against those who con-
tinued the cause of Lumumba.
The current struggle in Shaba
has nothing to do with Tshombe
and his secessionist movement.
The Congolese People’s Libera-
tion Front, led by General
Nathaniel Mbumba stands for the
eradication of Mobutu _ and
neo-colonialism in Zaire. Its pur-
pose is not separatism but the
genuine independence of Zaire
and the establishment of a truly
people’s government. :
The CPLF’s action is neither
racial nor without strong internal
support.
Not too long ago, Mobutu kil-
led quite a few officials and others
from his own party, government,
army, and other agencies after
discovering strong opposition to
his regime and sympathy for the
aims of the CPLF. After the first
Shaba episode, Mobutu charged
the general secretary of his own
ruling party with complicity with
the revolutionary forces in Shaba.
The current struggle by the CPLF

Pan-African army
proposed to protect
imperialist interests

that the western press paints is a
new system of denigration of the
liberation process in Africa.
Pan-African Army? |
Belgium and France are two of
the prime exploiters of Zaire.
They control a lot of Zaire’s min-
eral wealth. They have much in-
vested in Mobutu and Zaire. The

USA is also an important backer .

of Mobutu and controls mineral
resources. West Germany has es-
tablished a missile launching base
in parts of Shaba. Shaba is not
only a copper mining region, but
appears to be fast becoming the
base of imperialist offensives
against Africa. It is also from this
region that the CPLF leads the
anti-Mobutu and anti-imperialist
struggle.

"Zaire is also the base of anti-
MPLA-Angola forces. It is an im-
portant base of CIA operations
against Angola and the rest of Af-
rica. Mobutu himself is in the pay
‘of the CIA. Not only were these
facts known to the progressive
world, but they were further and
confirmed -by the former CIA
chief of anti-MPLA and pro-
FNLA and UNITA operations
from Zaire, John Stockwell.

In the current struggle in Sha-
ba, Mobutu did not only use Bel-
gian and French troops to sup-
press the rebellion, but openly
expressed the idea of hiring
French troops to ensure the sec-
urity of his government and the
monopolists who. control the re-

sources of Zaire. With rampant.

corruption and high cost of living,
there is a growing opposition to
Mobutu. Even the loyalty of his
army has come under question.
It is in these circumstances
that, the Prime Minister of Bel-
gium, Leo Tindemans, proposed
in the Belgian parliament the
necessity of a “‘pan-African sec-
urity force with logistic support’’
from Belgium and other NATO
countries, to protect ‘‘Europeans
working in African countries.”’

This idea is supported by Presi-
dent Giscard d’Estang of France
and Secretary of State Vance of
the USA. In Africa itself, most of
the French-speaking countries
have, under the auspices of their
fearsome leaders, fallen prey to
this essentially NATO design to
‘“‘Vietnamize’’ Africa and sup-
press the progressive struggles.
The Times of London, May 24,
quoted Andrew Young as having
said that militarily and otherwise

nothing could stop the USA from

doing ‘‘openly anything we want
to do in Africa.”’ It is understand-
able that Carter is coaxing the
senators and congressmen to
‘*free’’ his hand so that he would
be able to send troops into Africa
and .stop..the..so-called..“‘Soviet
and Cuban offensive and to sup-
port countries that are friendly to
the USA.’’ In reality, the new
NATO offensive in Africa, and
the so-called pan-African army is
the prelude to the imperialist
military action against the libera-
tion struggles in Namibia,
Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
The current idea of a pan-
African army supported by Omar
Bongo of Gabon, Houphuet
Boigney of Ivory Coast, and
Leopold Senghor of Senegal is

aimed at the willful intervention
against liberation forces and in the
interest of reaction. Its concrete
purpose is to ensure the security
of reactionary leaders and
monopolists in their rapacious
exploitation of Africa. In sub-
stance this is the idea of NATO to
extend itself into Africa and en-
sure the security of apartheid
South Africa, which constitutes
the strategic base of imperialism
in Africa.

Behind this idea are also Hua
Kuo-feng of China, whose foreign
minister, Huang Hua, recently vi-
sited Zaire, Anwar el Sadat of
Egypt, King Hassan of Morocco,
and Vorster of South Africa.
They see in Soviet and Cuban sol-
idarity with Africa’ s. progress,.a
threat to imperialism and their
own reactionary governments.
The practical collaboration of all
these forces to retard Africa’s
revolutionary struggle is an open
fact. Every success of an African
revolution, as in Ethiopia and
Angola, is a blow which with new
emergent forces will constitute a
powerful base for the struggle
against the NATO offensive in
Africa. The imperialist backed
pan-African army must never see
the light of day!

_ USSR-USA JOINT PROJECT TO DEVELOP ARTIFICIAL HEART

Se

Sc Teetarnecte *°

seampnonen entrees

These artificial heart models have been made in the USA (left) and the USSR E ae
. Each one
advantages with Soviet and American scientists are trying to merge in one design. Scientists ar ke
task of finding for the artificial heart durable materials compatible with living tissues. The human heart makes
. autos ite Gh mou Are model requires materials which would withstand such a colossal |
: ‘0 be useful, the model must be “ s .
pope in taught” to respond sensitively and rapidly to all demands

re the Plenary sessions of the
dele Seminars, members of state
eons of several different
si aes (to the UN Special Ses-
) took part as speakers and
Cipants in the discussions.

is another effort to free the re-
sources of Zaire from the control
by Belgian, American, and
French monopolies.

The picture of racial attacks,
PACIFIC TRIBUNE—June 23, 1978—Page 7