Authenticité (Zaire)
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''Authenticité'', sometimes Zairianisation in English, was an official state ideology of the regime of
Mobutu Sese Seko Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga (; born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu; 14 October 1930 – 7 September 1997) was a Congolese politician and military officer who was the president of Zaire from 1965 to 1997 (known as the Democratic Republic o ...
that originated in the late 1960s and early 1970s in what was first the
Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
, later renamed
Zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...
. The authenticity campaign was an effort to rid the country of the lingering vestiges of
colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...
and the continuing influence of
Western culture Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''. image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
and to create a more centralized and singular national identity. The policy, as implemented, included numerous changes to the state and to private life, including the renaming of the Congo and its cities, as well as an eventual mandate that Zairians were to abandon their Christian names for more "authentic" ones. In addition, Western-style attire was banned and replaced with the Mao-style tunic labeled the " abacost" and its female equivalent. The policy began to wane in the late 1970s and had mostly been abandoned by 1990.


Origin and general ideology

Not long after
Mobutu Sese Seko Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga (; born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu; 14 October 1930 – 7 September 1997) was a Congolese politician and military officer who was the president of Zaire from 1965 to 1997 (known as the Democratic Republic o ...
's declaration of the beginning of the Second Republic following his successful coup against the failing democratic government of President
Joseph Kasa-Vubu Joseph Kasa-Vubu, alternatively Joseph Kasavubu, ( – 24 March 1969) was a Congolese politician who served as the first President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then Republic of the Congo) from 1960 until 1965. A member of the Kong ...
, he declared his new nationalistic ideology in the ''
Manifesto of N'sele The Manifesto of N'sele (french: Manifeste de la N'sele) was a political document issued in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (later renamed Zaire) on 19 or 20 May 1967 which set out the official political stance of the Popular Movement of the ...
'' of May 1967. Over the next several years, Mobutu gradually instituted the policy measures that would come to define the campaign. More than anything, the ''retour à l’authenticité'' ("return to authenticity") was an effort on behalf of the self-declared "father of the nation" to create a national identity that could take precedence over regionalism and
tribalism Tribalism is the state of being organized by, or advocating for, tribes or tribal lifestyles. Human evolution has primarily occurred in small hunter-gatherer groups, as opposed to in larger and more recently settled agricultural societies or civ ...
while reconciling those claims with the exigencies of
modernization Modernization theory is used to explain the process of modernization within societies. The "classical" theories of modernization of the 1950s and 1960s drew on sociological analyses of Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and a partial reading of Max Weber, ...
. He described the ideology as follows:
''Authenticité'' has made us discover our personality by reaching into the depths of our past for the rich cultural heritage left to us by our ancestors. We have no intention of blindly returning to all ancestral customs; rather. We would like to choose those that adapt themselves well to modern life, those that encourage progress, and those that create a way of life and thought that are essentially ours.
Zairian party theorist Kangafu-Kutumbagana described ''authenticité'' as "...a metaphysical and abstract concept...not a dogma or a religion, but a manner of action...It leads away from borrowed ideas and aspirations towards an increased consciousness of indigenous cultural values." Though continually glorified by Mobutu and his statesmen, the authenticity campaign was the means through which the dictator intended to vindicate his own brand of leadership. He attempted to link his ideology and his political dominance before proclaiming authenticité by saying: "in our African tradition there are never two chiefs... That is why we Congolese, in the desire to conform to the traditions of our continent, have resolved to group all the energies of the citizens of our country under the banner of a single national party" despite the necessity of a lessening of tribal identity in order to promote national unity.


Renaming


The "Three Zs"

The most widely recognized result of ''authenticité'' was no doubt the renaming of the nation from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Zaire, a Portuguese mispronunciation of the
Kikongo Kongo or Kikongo is one of the Bantu languages spoken by the Kongo people living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Gabon and Angola. It is a tonal language. It was spoken by many of those who were taken from th ...
word or , which translates as "the river that swallows all rivers". It is not known for certain why President Mobutu chose a Portuguese colonial name instead of an authentic Congolese name. A
biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...
about Mobutu by ''
Le Monde ''Le Monde'' (; ) is a French daily afternoon newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average circulation of 323,039 copies per issue in 2009, about 40,000 of which were sold abroad. It has had its own website si ...
'' journalist Jean-Pierre Langellier, however, traces the naming of the currency ''
zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...
'' back to a dinner in June 1967 attended by Mobutu's economic adviser
Jacques de Groote Jacques de Groote (born 25 May 1927) is a Belgian financier and banker. Career In the period 1973–1994, he was one of the Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and in the period 1973 – 1991, one of the governors of t ...
, the governor of the Central Bank
Albert Ndele Albert Ndele Bamu (born 15 August 1930) is a Congolese politician and banker. He served as chairman of the College of Commissioners-General that governed the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) for two weeks while Justin Marie Bomboko returned ...
, and Belgian historian
Jan Vansina Jan Vansina (14 September 1929 – 8 February 2017) was a Belgian historian and anthropologist regarded as an authority on the history of Central Africa, especially of what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi. He was ...
; where the latter came up with the name as it believably designates, in different local languages including
Kikongo Kongo or Kikongo is one of the Bantu languages spoken by the Kongo people living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Gabon and Angola. It is a tonal language. It was spoken by many of those who were taken from th ...
, the "river which swallows all rivers".Langellier, Jean-Pierre. (2017). ''Mobutu''. Perrin. , 169. Four years later Mobutu also renamed the country and the
Congo River The Congo River ( kg, Nzâdi Kôngo, french: Fleuve Congo, pt, Rio Congo), formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharge ...
"Zaire", and referred to them as "''Les Trois Z—Notre Pays, Notre Fleuve, Notre Monnaie''" ("The Three Zs: Our Country, Our River, Our Money").


Place names

In addition, cities and provinces were renamed (Léopoldville as
Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...
, while
Katanga Province Katanga was one of the four large provinces created in the Belgian Congo in 1914. It was one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1966 and 2015, when it was split into the Tanganyika Province, Tanganyika, Hau ...
became Shaba). Streets, bridges, and other geographic features, as well as the armed forces, received name changes.


Personal names

Zaireans were required to drop their Western or
Christian name A Christian name, sometimes referred to as a baptismal name, is a religious personal name given on the occasion of a Christian baptism, though now most often assigned by parents at birth. In English-speaking cultures, a person's Christian name ...
s (often those of European saints) in favor of authentic "Zairean" names.Meditz, Sandra W. and Tim Merrill. Mobutu changed his own name from Joseph-Désiré Mobutu to Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga (more commonly abbreviated to Mobutu Sese Seko).


Dress code

Greatly a result of Mobutu’s 1973 visit to Beijing, Zairian males were strongly urged, and then required, to abandon Western suits and ties for the Mao-style tunic that he named the " abacost", a word derived from the pronunciation of the French ''à bas le costume'' ("down with the suit"). A female equivalent of the national attire was also created.


Church

The
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
hierarchy quickly came to view the ''retour à l'authenticité'' as a threat to Christianity in Zaire (in the early 1990s almost half of the population was Catholic). The regime's stress on "mental
decolonization Decolonization or decolonisation is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on separatism, in ...
" and "cultural dis-alienation" could be interpreted as an attack on Christianity as a product of Western influence, as could the emphasis on African culture as an alternative to widespread continuing Westernization. Also, the banning of Christian names was a measure that particularly offended the church. As part of his re-organization of Zairian life, Mobutu banned all outside Christian religious groups, requiring those who would function in Zaire to become part of one of four recognized umbrella groups. The four were: the
Kimbanguist Church , native_name_lang = , image = Simon Kibangu.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Simon Kimbangu , abbreviation = , type = New christian religious movement ...
(a
syncretic Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thu ...
church of Zairian origin), the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, the
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
es, and ''Les Églises du Christ au Zaire'' (ECZ, now
Church of Christ in Congo The Church of Christ in the Congo or CCC (in French, or ECC), is a union of 62 Protestant denominations, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Within the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it is often simply referred to as the Protestant Chu ...
), which covered most of the Protestant confessions. All others were declared illegal. The various Protestant churches had to affiliate with the last of these as communities within the ECZ in Zaire. At the time there were numerous local sects and church groups which had sprung up, and it is believed Mobutu wanted to control these, as well as the churches in general.


Other

Under the state and party ideology of authenticity, all citizens were equal and the appropriate term of address among all Zairians became ''citoyen'', or citizen. The term was mandated for public use in order to do away with the perceived hierarchical distinctions of ''monsieur'' and ''madame''. Visiting heads of state were greeted with African drumming and singing as opposed to the 21-gun salute, traditional in Western practice.Kabwit, Ghislain C. The state urged that all traditional works of art be returned to the country so as to inspire Zairian artists and ensure the incorporation of traditional styles into contemporary artwork.


Decline

Although many of the changes instituted as part of ''authenticité'' lasted nearly to the end of the Mobutu regime or beyond it, the ideology had begun to wane by the late 1970s as it could do little more to benefit Mobutu's
kleptocratic Kleptocracy (from Greek κλέπτης ''kléptēs'', "thief", κλέπτω ''kléptō'', "I steal", and -κρατία -''kratía'' from κράτος ''krátos'', "power, rule") is a government whose corrupt leaders (kleptocrats) use politica ...
regime. Mobutu's announcement of the transition to the Third Republic in 1990, which included most notably a
three-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in c ...
, came with the freedom to return to more universal forms of address and to wear a suit and tie. Also, by the 1990s many Zairians had resumed use of their given names. After Mobutu was forced to flee the country in the
First Congo War The First Congo War, group=lower-alpha (1996–1997), also nicknamed Africa's First World War, was a civil war and international military conflict which took place mostly in Zaire (present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo), with major spillo ...
in 1997, President
Laurent Kabila Laurent may refer to: *Laurent (name), a French masculine given name and a surname **Saint Laurence (aka: Saint ''Laurent''), the martyr Laurent **Pierre Alphonse Laurent, mathematician **Joseph Jean Pierre Laurent, amateur astronomer, discoverer ...
officially abolished Zaire's ''authenticité'' policy and renamed the country back to the
Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
.


See also

*
Decolonisation of Africa The decolonisation of Africa was a process that took place in the Scramble for Africa, mid-to-late 1950s to 1975 during the Cold War, with radical government changes on the continent as Colonialism, colonial governments made the transition to So ...


Notes


References


Citations


Sources

* Adelman, Kenneth Lee. "The Recourse to Authenticity and Negritude in Zaire." ''The Journal of Modern African Studies'', Vol. 13, No. 1 (Mar., 1975), pp. 134–139. * * Kabwit, Ghislain C.. "Zaire: The Roots of the Continuing Crisis." ''The Journal of Modern African Studies''. Vol. 17, No. 3 (Sep., 1979), pp. 381–407. * Langellier, Jean-Pierre. (2017). ''Mobutu''. Perrin. * Meditz, Sandra W. and Tim Merrill.
Zaire: A Country Study
'. Claitor's Law Books and Publishing Division. * Meredith, Martin. ''The Fate of Africa: From the Hopes of Freedom to the Heart of Despair, a History of Fifty Years of Independence''. PublicAffairs. * Wrong, Michela. ''In The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz''. Harper Collins. * Young, Crawford, and Thomas Turner. ''The Rise and Decline of the Zairian State''. University of Wisconsin Press. {{DEFAULTSORT:Authenticite (Zaire) African and Black nationalism in Africa Political and cultural purges Congolese nationalism (Democratic Republic of the Congo) Decolonization State ideologies Zaire Mobutu Sese Seko