Joseph Kasavubu
| Joseph Kasa-Vubu | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 1st President of Congo-Léopoldville | |
|
In office 1 July 1960 – 24 November 1965 |
|
| Prime Minister |
Patrice Lumumba Joseph Iléo Albert Ndele Justin Marie Bomboko Joseph Iléo Cyrille Adoula Moise Tshombe Évariste Kimba |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Mobutu Sese Seko |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1917 Kuma-Dizi, Mayombe, Belgian Congo (Now Congo-Kinshasa) |
| Died | 24 March 1969 Boma, Congo-Léopoldville (Now Congo-Kinshasa) |
| Political party | ABAKO |
| Children | Justine Kasa-Vubu |
Joseph Kasa-Vubu, alternatively Joseph Kasavubu, (1910 [other sources have 1913, 1915 and 1917] – 24 March 1969) was the first president of the Congo-Léopoldville (1960–65), today the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Little is known about Kasa-Vubu's youth. He born in the village of Kuma-Dizi in the Mayombe district of the Belgian Congo in 1917. His early education was in the Kongo language. He was rumoured to be the grandson of a Chinese worker brought to the Congo to work on a railroad line between Matadi and Léopoldville. His mother was a member of the Bakongo tribe. In 1925, he took the Christian name Joseph, and his parents sent him to receive a Catholic education in Mbata Kiela Kasa-Vubu went on to study theology and philosophy at the Kabwe seminary until 1939, but before graduation, he opted to become a teacher rather than a priest. He later converted to Protestantism.
Kasa-Vubu went on to work as an agronomist, book keeper and civil servant before he attained the rank of chief clerk, the highest level of employment available to Congolese under Belgian colonial rule. Kasa-Vubu began semi-clandestine political organizing work while he was still employed by colonial authorities.
In 1955, Kasa-Vubu was elected leader of the ABAKO (Alliance des Bakongo), made primarily of his own people, from around the Congo River. Under his leadership, the group swept the first open municipal Leopoldville elections in 1957, and he was elected mayor of the Dendale district of the city.
Kasa-Vubu quickly became known as one of the first Congolese leaders to call for independence. At first, he advocated for independence from Belgium on a 30-year timeline, but he shortened the timetable as the ABAKO movement gained in strength. In his inauguration speech as mayor of Dendale, Kasa-Vubu reiterated his demand for independence, drawing a reprimand from Belgian colonial authorities, which only strengthened his image as a Congolese leader.
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