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    Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart

    Page 34
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      Equator Express 249

      ferries 25, 54, 83, 190, 192, 219, 250, 259, 295–6

      flamboyants 160

      Foreman, George: ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ boxing match (1974) 239, 319

      Forester, C. S.: The African Queen 92, 226

      see also African Queen, The (film)

      Fransen, Leon 169, 175–6

      Gbadolite 239

      Giatros, Yani 285–7

      gold mining 14, 24, 73, 334

      Goma 18, 20–21

      Greene, Graham: A Burnt-Out Case 314

      Guevara, Ernesto ‘Che’ 86–7, 143, 186

      Habyarimana, Juvénal 13

      Hammarskjöld, Dag 299

      Harrison, John 337

      Hatton & Cookson (trading company) 337

      Hélière, Marie-France 188–9

      Hepburn, Katharine 92, 226, 234, 249, 264, 294

      Hewa Bora (airline) 53, 55

      Hickok, ‘Wild Bill’ (James) 43

      Hippolite (businessman) 329–30, 339, 340

      hippopotami 10, 208, 287

      Hoare, Mike (‘Mad Mike’) 187, 192, 224

      Congo Mercenary 187–8

      Hutu refugees xvi, 13, 20–21, 226, 247

      interahamwe xvi, 13, see Hutu refugees

      International Criminal Court 336

      International Rescue Committee (IRC) 91, 92–6, 226–7, 242, 243–4, 247

      ivory trade 35, 54, 78, 82, 86, 159, 334, 344

      ‘Jean-Claude’ (Belgian colonialist) 72–3

      John II, of Portugal 32, 34–5

      John III, of Portugal 39

      ‘Johnny’ (businessman) 322–5

      Kabambarre 97, 128, 144–5, 146–9

      Kabila, Joseph 17, 24, 26, 286–7, 320–22, 344–5

      Kabila, Laurent 12, 13–14, 15, 16, 17, 56, 60, 86, 321, 324, 329, 345

      Kalemie (formerly Albertville) xi–xii, xiii–xiv, xv, 70, 73, 77, 83–5

      administration and bureaucracy 104–6

      airport 88

      airstrip 78–80

      as Belgian settlement 80, 83, 86, 90

      cotton factory 99, 108, 138, 169

      earthquake (2005) 345

      eco-system 79

      Hotel Du Lac 90–91

      and independence 113, 140–41

      International Rescue Committee house 91, 92–6

      last Belgian resident 111–14

      petrol supplies 97, 120

      Radio Okapi 88

      ‘Railwaymen’s Club’ 103

      UN (MONUC) base 54, 70, 71, 88, 89, 99, 100, 126, 147

      uprising (1964) 91, 106–7

      in World War I 92

      Kamulete, Commissioner Pierre xiv, 105–6

      Kaoze, Abbot Stephano 114

      Kasai province 237, 242

      Kasongo 97, 157

      Arab slave market 167–8

      and Belgian–Arab war (1892) 157–9

      as Belgian centre 159–60, 165–6, 175

      boom period under Mobutu 166–7

      Care International 97, 99, 128, 152, 155–7, 172–3, 174–5

      flamboyants 160

      graveyard 168–9, 175

      hospital 165, 167, 175

      market 169, 171–2

      mayor 161–2

      Mulele Mai uprising (1960s) 161, 168, 173, 175

      Muslim population 163–5

      Kasongo, Fiston 103–4, 119–20, 124, 127–8, 129, 130, 131

      Katanda, Bishop Masimango 192–4

      Katanga province xiii, 9, 15, 26, 57–6, 58, 63–4, 98, 134, 237, 238

      Kavunja, Idi 109–10, 111

      Kenya: mai-mai uprising (1950s) 122

      Kibombo 184–5

      Kilimanjaro, Mount 78

      Kilwa 343

      Kindu (upper Congo) 69, 72, 157, 183, 191–2, 198

      as Belgian centre 190–91, 196–7

      cannibalism 189–90

      Christian community 192–5, 197–8

      UN (MONUC) base 71, 174, 188–9, 191, 192, 193

      Uruguayan navy 202–4

      Kingsolver, Barbara: The Poisonwood Bible 194, 235

      Kinshasa (formerly Leopoldville) 9, 11, 12, 14–15, 16–17, 26, 62, 65, 88, 258, 259, 319, 320, 344

      Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville) 190, 202, 225, 233, 250, 255, 260, 268–9, 275–6

      Cathedral 251, 294

      diamond industry 226, 276–7, 281

      early history 282–3

      Falls Hotel 259–60

      foreigners 285–7

      International Rescue Committee 226–7

      ‘L’Hôtel Pourquoi Pas?’ 264, 294

      and Lumumba’s Congolese National Movement 284–5

      ‘Mass Lootings’ (1990s) 269–70

      Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus 270–75

      mobile phone shop 278–9

      Mulele Mai rebellion (1964) 225

      Palm Beach hotel 255–6, 288

      Primus brewery 266

      quayside and boats 250–51, 263, 264–6, 267–8, 280–82, 293–4

      restaurant 277–8

      rioting (2004) 269

      UN (MONUC) base 268, 269, 276, 285, 287–8

      Wagenia fishermen 257–8, 261

      Kisangani–Ubundu road 244–8

      Kivu, Lake (Congo) 20

      Kombozi, Michel 243, 246, 247, 249, 250

      Lady Alice (Stanley’s boat) 48, 87, 198, 201, 215, 257, 258, 327, 328, 340

      Lancet, The 343–4

      languages 71

      KiKongo 33

      KinyaMamba 164

      Lingala 15, 321

      Swahili xv, 15, 63, 71, 137, 164, 281, 321

      Larkin, Philip: ‘Toad’ poems 22

      Larson, Brian 72, 97

      Lazzarato, Father Luigi 163

      Lee, Tommy 91, 93–6

      Leon, Father 270–74, 294

      Leopold II, King of the Belgians 6, 7, 9, 14, 23, 80–82, 151, 159, 295, 331, 332

      Leopoldville see Kinshasa

      leprosy 113, 314

      Lippens, Lieutenant 158–9, 168

      Lisala 313

      Littell, Blaine 106–7

      Livingstone, David 5, 42, 44, 45-7, 145, 146, 147, 157, 199

      Lowa 209, 213

      Lualaba, River 47

      Luama river 150

      Lubumbashi (formerly Elisabethville) 26, 53, 54, 68–9, 184, 190

      airport 59–63

      assassination of Lumumba 58–9

      Belgian Club 65

      Cathedral 68

      cobalt mining 26, 63–8, 191, 322

      railway station 68, 69

      show-jumping competitions 63

      Lukuga River 77, 83, 95, 107, 121, 122–3, 132

      Lumumba, Patrice 58–9, 284–5, 309, 319

      mai-mai, the xiv–xvi, 101, 102, 125–7, 128, 130, 143, 156, 172, 226, 260

      Makungu, Vermond 165–6, 167–9

      malaria 113, 121, 182, 262, 275, 289, 313, 314

      Malaysia 309–10

      Mamba, the 164

      Mamulay, Lt-Col Albert Albiti 106

      Mangubu, Clement 282–4

      Maniema province xiii, 102, 134, 146

      ManiKongo, the see Affonso; Nzinga a Nkuwu

      Marshal Mobutu suspension bridge 239, 328, 340

      Matadi 9, 287, 328, 330, 331, 340

      Matadi–Kinshasa road 330–32

      Matata, Pierre 173–4

      Matongo, Mayor Verond Ali 161–3

      Matz, Jean 169, 175–6

      ‘Maurice’ (businessman) 319, 320, 328–9, 331

      Mbandaka 287, 293, 301, 304, 314–16

      MbanzaKongo 33, 36

      Mbenga (tanker) 280–81, 282

      Mbueta, Pascal Manday (bowman) 301–2, 306, 307

      Mbuyu, Georges xvi, 100–2, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108–9, 110, 120, 124–31, 214, 345

      mercenaries, 1960s 23, 186–8

      Messenger, James 48

      Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus 270–75, 294

      Mituku, the 224

      MNC see Congolese National Movement

      mobile phones 25, 251, 278–9, 324–5


      Mobutu Sese Seko 122, 309

      birthplace 313

      brutal regime 11, 60, 161, 238–41

      changes country’s name to Zaire 12

      death 14

      and decline in Congo’s economy 63, 166–7, 237–8, 334

      and Guevara 86–7

      and ‘Mass Lootings’ 269–70

      name change 241

      ousted by Kabila 12, 13–14, 56

      as paramilitary under Belgians 241–2

      Monshengo, Captain Jean Paul Mbuta 297, 301, 302, 303, 304

      MONUC (UN peace-keeping mission) 24, 149, 255, 299, 343, 344

      charter boats 287, 293, 294–5, 296–8, 299–306

      Congo River patrol 201–4, 205–9

      Kalemie base 54, 70, 71, 78–9, 88, 89, 99, 100, 126, 147

      Kindu base 71, 174, 188–9, 191, 192, 193

      Kisangani base 268, 269, 276, 285, 287–8

      shuttle flights 54, 77, 315–16

      mosquitoes 286, 302–3

      Mtowa 54, 83, 107, 109–10

      Mugabe, Robert 122

      Mukumbo 139–43

      Mulele, Pierre 161, 238–9

      Mulele Mai rebellion (1964) 161, 168–9, 173, 175–6, 186–7, 224–5, 238, 272–4

      Mulolwa mai-mai 126, 128, 130, 133–4

      Mumumbo, Luamba 140–41

      Mungereza, Jumaine 163–5

      Muslims 163, 164–5

      see also Arab slavers

      Mutshaliko 218–20

      Mwamba, Kungwa 205–6, 207

      Nagant, Geneviève 111–14

      Naipaul, V. S.: A Bend in the River 270, 277

      Namibia 14

      New York Herald 6, 42, 43, 45, 46

      Nganga, Mutombo 101

      Nganing (UN boat) 294–5, 298, 299–306, 309, 313–14, 315

      Ngenda, Odimba 99, 102, 114–15, 120, 123, 124–5, 127–30, 132–5, 137–40, 142–4, 148–52, 175, 180, 181, 182, 186, 345

      Ngenzeka 129–30

      Ngogo, Simone 166–7

      Nguy, Muke 135–7

      Niemba 132

      Nyamwaya, Tom 155–7, 169–70, 171, 172, 174, 345

      Nyirangongo, Mount: eruption 20, 21

      Nzaku, Prince 35

      Nzinga a Nkuwu (the ManiKongo, John) 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38

      Nzuzi, Father Adalbert Mwehu 233, 234, 236–7, 241, 242, 243

      Obila 247

      O’Brien, Conor Cruise 197

      To Katanga and Back 197–8

      okapi 22

      Oloba, Liye 218–20

      ONATRA (transport company) 295

      Onusumba Yemba, Adolphe 18–20, 26–7, 55, 345

      palm oil 135–7, 185, 195, 309–10

      pangolins 341

      peace treaty (2002) 26, 28, 55, 56, 70–71, 88, 114, 260, 296, 343

      petrol supplies 120, 281

      Pike, Alice 48

      Pilette, André: A Travers L’Afrique Équatoriale 190–91

      pirogues 181–2, 201, 213, 214–15, 220–22, 227, 250, 267, 310–12

      Pocock, Edward 48, 49

      Pocock, Francis 48, 198, 199–200, 325–6

      Ponthierville see Ubundu

      Portugal/Portuguese

      explorers 31–2, 34–5, 37–8, 40

      slave trade 38–9

      Powell, Robert 287–8, 293

      Primus brewery, Kisangani 266–7

      Prince Charles (ship) 205

      Punch 44

      pygmies xvi, 100, 108–9, 126, 131

      Rabinek, Gustav Maria 151–2

      railways 25, 54, 57, 68, 69, 83, 84, 92, 103, 107, 132, 183–4, 191, 205–6, 236, 248–9

      rainforest, the 21–2, 137–8, 244, 245–6, 248–50, 301

      RCD (Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie) 18

      Republic of the Congo 15

      roads/road network xv, 10, 20, 54, 57, 68–9, 70, 81, 84–5, 98–9, 108, 138–9, 145, 188, 191, 244–8, 260, 330–32

      Roget (driver) 330, 341

      Royal Geographical Society (formerly African Association) 40, 41, 44

      rubber industry 78, 111, 159, 307–8, 334

      ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ boxing match (1974) 239, 319

      RVF (navigation company) 295, 306

      Rwanda 14, 20, 24, 55–6, 89, 247, 269, 276

      Hutu genocide of Tutsis (1994) xvi, 13, 55

      Sabiti, Kabinga 149

      Saidi, Oggi 258, 259, 260, 262–3, 264–8, 288–90

      Sampson Low, Marston & Company 45

      Sandoka (pirogue) 214–15, 221

      Savimbi, Jonas 323–4

      Sazali, Mohammed Yusoff (Ali) 297–8, 299–300, 302, 303, 305–6, 309–10, 312, 313, 314, 315

      Sefu 158, 168

      Sierra Leone 40

      Simenon, Georges 163, 166

      Talatala 138

      slave trade

      Arab see Arab slave trade

      European 38–40, 78, 81

      snails, African 246

      Spectator, The 44

      Speke, John Hanning 42

      Sridar (restaurateur) 277–8

      Stanley, Henry Hope 43

      Stanley, Henry Morton 5–6, 54

      birth and childhood 42

      on both sides in American Civil War 43

      employed as journalist by New York Herald 43

      finds Livingstone 5, 44–5, 47

      finds newspaper to commission second African trip (1874) 46–9

      first sight of Congo River (1876) 109, 179–80, 181

      journey down Congo River (1876–7) 198–201, 229, 244, 257–8, 260–61, 325, 326–8

      and Leopold II 6–7, 80–81, 283, 295, 331, 333

      negative image as coloniser 81, 110, 111, 332–4

      rescue and entry into Boma (1877) 336–9, 341–2

      road-building through Crystal Mountains (1880s) 81, 331–2

      and Tippu-Tip 283

      writings 54, 131, 134, 143, 147

      The Exploration Diary of H. M. Stanley 169

      How I Found Livingstone 45

      Through the Dark Continent 54

      Stanley Falls, Congo River 225, 229, 244, 257, 261–2, 293

      Stanley Pool, Congo River 15, 325–6

      Stanleyville see Kisangani

      Tanganyika, Lake xi, 10, 33, 44, 47, 54, 77–8, 80, 82, 92, 112

      Tango Four (mai-mai leader) xvi

      Tanzania 78, 83, 84, 86, 120

      Taylor, Murray 224–5

      Tekele (motorboat) 265, 266, 267, 280

      Telegraph (Stanley’s pirogue) 201, 258

      tigerfish 288

      timber industry 24, 334

      Tippu-Tip 158, 283

      tolekas see bicycle taxis

      tribes, Congolese 81, 82, 239–40, 283, 334–5

      BaKongo 33

      Banga-Banga 70

      Bantu 126

      Banyamulenge 89

      Batetele 159

      Mamba 164

      Mituku 224

      pygmy xvi, 100, 108–9, 126, 131

      Wagenia 201, 257–8, 261, 283

      Zulu 80

      Tshikapa 324–5

      Tshombe, Moise 58–9

      Tshopo hydroelectric power station 286, 287

      Tuckey, Captain James Kingston 40–41

      Tutsis xvi, 13, 20, 55–6, 73–4, 89

      Ubundu (formerly Ponthierville) 202, 213, 226–7, 228–9, 233, 234, 271–2

      and filming of The African Queen 226, 234

      harbour 229–30

      last Catholic priest 233, 234, 236–7, 240–41, 242

      St Joseph’s church and drum 235–6

      Uganda 13, 14, 16, 24, 110, 344

      Ujiji 44

      Ulindi (ship) 205

      UNITA rebels 323–4

      United Nations (UN)

      in the Congo 189–9, 308, see MONUC

      and Lumumba’s assassination 58

      missions 79, 99–100, 114, 189–90, 298–9

      Security Council 283–4, 298

      sponsorship of peace talks 18

      World Food Programme 102

      United States of America 22–3, 58, 86, 238, 240, 284, 308, 324


      uranium deposits 57, 66

      Uruguayan Congo River patrol 201–4, 205–9

      vaccinations 227, 242, 243, 247, 329

      Verbeken, Wim xv–xvi

      Verberne, Father Heinrich 272–3, 274

      Victoria, Lake 198, 261

      Victoria, Queen 45, 121, 332

      Voix des Minorités, La 100, 101, 109

      Vrithoff, Alexis 83

      Wafula, Dieudonné 21

      Wagenia, the 201, 257–8, 261, 283

      Waugh, Evelyn 90, 163

      Remote People 90, 96

      Wilson, Father 271, 274, 275

      Wilson, Lt Commander Jorge 202, 203, 207–9

      Witte, Ludo de 59

      World Food Programme 102

      World War, First 92

      Wright, Louise 194–7, 198

      ‘Yav’ (mining company employee) 61–3, 64

      Zaire 12, 241, 242

      Zambia 57, 66, 67, 83, 343

      Zanzibar 41, 42, 44, 46–7, 49, 82, 137, 145, 158, 333

      Zenga, Simon 265, 266

      Zimbabwe 14, 66, 122, 322, 323

      Zulu, the 80

      Acknowledgements

      Blood River taught me how the seemingly solitary process of book-writing depends on many people.

      Without the bravery and generosity I encountered from strangers in the Congo, the project would have failed. Those to whom I owe a particular debt include Georges Mbuyu, Benoit Bangana, Odimba Ngenda, Bishop Masimango Katanda, Dr Adolphe Onusemba Yemba, Clement Mangubu, Oggi Saidi, Brian Larson and his Care International Colleagues, Tom Nyamwaya and Lynn Heinisch, Tommy Lee and his International Rescue Committee colleague, Andrea De Domenico, Father Leon and his fellow Missionaries from the Order of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and Michel Bonnardeaux and his colleagues from MONUC, Marie-France Hélière, Ann Barnes, Robert Powell, Commander Jorge Wilson and Lieutenant Commander Sazali Yusoff. I also owe thanks to others who cannot be named for reasons of security and whose names had to be changed in the text.

      During my research I received help from many including Paul Salopek, Rae Simkin, Kate Nicholls, Jean de Dieu Wassoo, Robert Mwinyihali, Franck Meriau, Ambassador Bene M’Poko, Gaston Ntambo, Gerald Sadleir, Paul Connolly, John Loubser, Nick Alexander, James Astill and Jason Stearns.

      And the long leg of the journey that began after I returned from the Congo was made possible by the love and support of Lisette and Stanley Butcher, Patrick and Marilyn Flanagan, Anthea Stephens and Stuart Huntley; the backing of kindred spirits at the Daily Telegraph; the courage of Camilla Hornby at Curtis Brown, and the skill of Rebecca Carter and Poppy Hampson at Chatto & Windus.

      Finally, my eternal thanks and love to Jane for her unstinting enthusiasm and to Kit, who joined us halfway through the writing, for being such a good sleeper.

      Credits:

      1 Maps by Paul Simmons

      2 Drawing of the Lady Alice taken from H.M. Stanley’s Through the Dark Continent, 1878, Sampson Low, Marston & Company

      3 Advertisements from The Guide to South and East Africa (for the Use of Tourists, Sportsmen, Invalids and Settlers), 1915, Sampson Low, Marston & Company

     


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