Latest / The History of Belgium: A Small Country with a Giant Colonial Legacy — Fexingo History / Belgium's 1955 Tshibumba Oil Refinery Strike
Transcript
- Lucas: So, we've talked a lot about resistance in the Belgian Congo — rebellions, mutinies, the Force Publique. But there's one story that doesn't get nearly enough attention, and it's right in the middle of the so-called 'golden age' of Belgian colonialism, the 1950s. Luna: What happened in the 50s? Lucas: In 1955, a strike broke out at the Tshibumba oil refinery in Katanga. Now, Katanga was the industrial heart of the colony, rich in copper and uranium. The refinery was built by the Belgian company Société Générale, and it was meant to process crude oil for the entire region. Lucas: But the conditions for Congolese workers were terrible. They were paid a fraction of what European workers earned, had no job security, and lived in segregated camps with poor sanitation. The straw that broke the camel's back was when the company announced a wage increase for European staff but nothing for Africans. Luna: So they walked out? Lucas: Exactly. On the morning of October 17, 1955, about 1,200 Congolese workers at Tshibumba downed tools. They demanded equal pay, better housing, and recognition of their union. The leader was a man named Albert Mwana Nsaka, a mechanic who had been secretly organizing workers for months. Luna: Albert Mwana Nsaka — was he an évolué? Lucas: He was. He'd been educated at a mission school, spoke French, and had worked his way up from laborer to skilled mechanic. But like many évolués, he was still treated as a second-class citizen. The Belgian administration saw educated Africans as a threat, and they were right to be worried. Lucas: The strike spread quickly. Within days, workers at the nearby Union Minière du Haut-Katanga copper mines joined in sympathy. Production ground to a halt. The colonial authorities panicked. Luna: What did they do? Lucas: They sent in the Force Publique. On October 22, soldiers surrounded the refinery and ordered the strikers to disperse. When they refused, the troops opened fire. Nine Congolese workers were killed, dozens wounded. Albert Mwana Nsaka was arrested and deported to a remote camp in the interior. Lucas: But here's the thing — the strike didn't just end with the crackdown. It actually forced some concessions. The company agreed to build new housing, improve medical care, and establish a formal grievance procedure. It was a small victory, but it showed that collective action could work. Luna: And it inspired others? Lucas: Absolutely. The Tshibumba strike became a model for later labor actions. It also radicalized a generation of Congolese workers. Many of the men who led the independence movements in the early 1960s — like Patrice Lumumba and Joseph Kasa-Vubu — had cut their teeth organizing unions in the 1950s. Lucas: The Belgian government tried to suppress news of the strike. Newspapers in Léopoldville were censored, and the colonial report downplayed the violence. But word got out through the network of évolués and African clerks. Luna: So it was a kind of underground news network. Lucas: Exactly. They called it the 'radio-trottoir' — pavement radio. And it was incredibly effective. By 1956, the Mwana Nsaka case was being discussed in the Belgian parliament, and even some European newspapers picked it up. Lucas: Now, I want to zoom in on Albert Mwana Nsaka himself. He's not a well-known figure, but his story is fascinating. After his deportation, he spent two years in a forced labor camp in the Kasai region. He survived, and when he was released, he went straight back to organizing. Luna: He didn't give up? Lucas: No. In fact, he became even more radical. He helped found the Fédération Générale des Travailleurs Congolais, or FGTC, which was one of the first truly national trade unions in the Congo. He also started writing pamphlets calling for independence. Lucas: The colonial police kept him under surveillance. He was arrested again in 1959 during the Léopoldville riots, but by then, the momentum for independence was unstoppable. He was eventually freed and became a minor figure in the first post-independence government. Luna: What happened to him after independence? Lucas: Sadly, he fell victim to the chaos of the Congo Crisis. In 1961, during the Katanga secession, he was captured by Moise Tshombe's forces and executed. His body was never found. Lucas: But his legacy lived on. The Tshibumba strike became a founding myth of the Congolese labor movement. Every year on October 17, workers at the refinery — now run by the state — commemorate the strike. Luna: I'd never heard of this. Why isn't it more widely known? Lucas: Partly because it was overshadowed by the bigger events of 1959 and 1960. But also because Belgian colonial history tends to focus on the 'civilizing mission' and the economic achievements — the mines, the railroads, the plantations. Labor resistance doesn't fit that narrative. Lucas: And for the post-independence Congolese governments, the strike was a reminder of the divisions within the independence movement — between the intellectual évolués and the working class. So it was convenient to let it fade from public memory. Luna: That's a pattern we've seen in other episodes — the selective memory of history. Lucas: Exactly. The Tshibumba strike is a perfect example of how history gets written by the victors, but also by the ones who write the textbooks. If we don't dig into these stories, we lose the texture of what colonialism actually felt like for ordinary people. Lucas: So next time you fill up your car, think about the oil that came from places like Tshibumba — and the blood that was spilled to produce it. Luna: That's a sobering thought.