Uranium mining and extraction from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during World War II and the Cold War has been a subject of scrutiny and debate for a long time. The repercussions of intensive exploitation by the Belgians and Americans severely affected the country’s nuclear aspirations and its position in the global power hierarchy.
Despite supplying almost 80% of uranium used in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs, the DRC's involvement in building the Western nuclear arsenal has largely been ignored (Owens, 2019). Even worse, the price for this involvement was paid by underpaid and overworked Congolese miners as a consequence of substantial exposure to radiation. Viewing this issue through a postcolonial lens reveals the asymmetries of power and amplifies the voices of the marginalized, in addition to advocating for an equitable approach to Congo’s nuclear development in the backdrop of political instability, economic underdevelopment and foreign interference.
Colonial Exploitation
Foreign powers have profited from the systematic plunder of Congo's abundant natural resources, starting with the brutal reign of King Leopold II and continuing through the Belgian colonial era. In the late 1800s, Congo became the personal fiefdom of Belgian King Leopold II due to the demand for ivory and rubber and during World War I, demands for copper resulted in tyrannical exploitation by the West for its massive deposits. (Prendergast, 2022). However, uranium, with its strategic importance in the accelerating nuclear arms race, emerged as a highly sought-after commodity by Western nations seeking to gain dominance.
The Belgian mining giant, Union Meniere du Haut Katanga (UMHK), owner of the prized Shinkolobwe mine, virtually treated the Congolese workers as slaves who laboured in obscurity in dangerous circumstances (Bele, 2021). The Belgian colonial administration enabled the extraction of uranium ore from Congolese soil, often at the expense of indigenous rights and environmental integrity. The DRC serves as a case study for how greed-driven transnational economic exploitation can go on for centuries. The brutalization of the Congolese people has directly benefited businesses and consumers in the US, Europe, and, more recently, China, Uganda, and Rwanda.
Geopolitics
Due to its strategic importance in the Cold War rivalry, the DRC was overrun by covert operations, political maneuvering and neocolonial interventions. When Nazi Germany occupied Belgium in 1940, the U.S. persuaded UMHK to transfer all its mined uranium supplies for safekeeping. New York received and stored twelve hundred tons of ore that had been transported from the Congo. During this venture, Congolese miners worked round-the-clock shifts for almost two weeks, unknowingly exposing themselves to large amounts of radiation (Owens, 2019). Then in the 1950s, after beating Germany, the U.S. entered into a race with the Soviets to prevent them from gaining access to Congo uranium. Secrecy and fabrication were of utmost importance to the American authorities to prevent the proliferation of knowledge of the highly valuable resources in Congo. According to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1440 tons of uranium concentrates were provided solely by Belgian Congo, making it its single largest supplier. Under the veil of secrecy, Congolese miners continued to work at relatively low costs for the sake of “U.S. national security” (Bele, 2021). This underscores the global power hierarchy and the positionality of colonies, despite resources and tactical geographical advantages.
When Congo finally gained independence in 1960, geopolitical contestations in the region were still not over. Patrice Lumumba, the first democratically elected prime minister of the DRC, made a resolution to redeem his people and his country of colonial injustices. However, within six months, the Katanga province (home to the Shinkolobwe mine) seceded and Lumumba was assassinated by a combination of Belgian partisans and the authorisation by American president Eisenhower. Thereafter, CIA-backed Joseph Mobutu was appointed as the kleptocratic dictator, in full support of the U.S. government (Owens, 2019).
Leftovers for Congo
The legacy of uranium mining left the people of Congo plagued by health issues, inescapable poverty and perpetual conflict. The concern for American national security pushed them to source uranium from a colonial power that exploited the land and people of its colony. On one hand, the U.S. turned a blind eye to that injustice during World War II because of the race to develop a nuclear weapon before the Nazis and during the Cold War, subverted the DRC’s democracy in an attempt to keep the Soviet Union from accessing the mine. On the other hand, during the era of decolonization, when Belgium realized that sharing uranium with the U.S. was essential for maintaining its support for colonial rule in Congo, it conceded much of its power to the Americans. However, the brunt of this high-handed governance was faced by the people on the ground, working in the uranium mines.
Another interesting aspect to consider is that numerous studies on the impact of the atomic bomb on the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were conducted shortly after the war. Surprisingly, however, no studies on the long-term consequences of uranium ingestion in humans were conducted at the extraction site in the DRC. Even today, there is no strategy in place to protect the population from the effects of generations-long uranium mining industry. The exact number of Congolese victims who supplied the uranium that ended World War II remains unknown to us (Bele, 2021).
References
1. Owens, J., & Drozdenko, T. (2019, February 28). The DRC and America’s Nuclear Weapons. Outrider. https://outrider.org/nuclear-weapons/articles/drc-and-americas-nuclear-weapons
2. Prendergast, J. (2022, July 29). Turning Off Congo’s Looting Machine. Project Syndicate. https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/congo-history-of-foreign-pillagiing-of-natural-resources-by-john-prendergast-2022-07
3. Bele, J. (2021, January). The Legacy of the Involvement of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the Bombs Dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. MIT Faculty Newsletter. https://fnl.mit.edu/january-february-2021/the-legacy-of-the-involvement-of-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-in-the-bombs-dropped-on-hiroshima-and-nagasaki/#footnote_0_1965
Your blog offers a compelling examination of the DRC's nuclear narrative and its far-reaching impact. However, the blog primarily draws from Western sources and perspectives, such as American and Belgian viewpoints. Including more Congolese voices and sources would enrich the analysis and provide a more comprehensive view of the situation.
Thank you for bringing attention on the often overlooked and deeply troubling history of uranium mining in Congo. Your insightful analysis contributes to a deeper understanding of the complexities surrounding uranium mining and its far-reaching implications for both the past and present.
Thank you from bringing in a post colonial perspective on something that has largely gone unnoticed as it perpetuated neo imperial practices in the name of the US national interest. How did the Cold War rivalry influence the strategic importance of uranium mining in the DRC, and what were the broader geopolitical consequences for the region?
Thank you for your analysis on Congo and its largely unnoticed colonial Uranium project. Although, the answer may seem obvious, what in your opinion is the reason, a country like Congo despite being the supplier of nuclear energy minerals, is unable to rise up today as an African great power?
Thank you for shedding light on the effects of colonialism on African countries like Congo through the example of Uranium mining , this is not something that I had thought of . It is really interesting to know how these effects have been long term and how they have been ignored by the west .