"Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon" (Hammarskjold).
Though Belgium granted independence to the Congo, driven by greed for Congo's wealth in minerals, it still controlled so many aspects of the nation that it left the Congo illusioned and unprepared for statehood, leading to corruption and trouble days after independence.
Patrice Lumumba, Congo's Prime Minister, on Independence: "Men and women of the Congo...I salute you in the name of the Congolese Government. I ask all of you, my friends, who tirelessly fought in our ranks, to mark this June 30, 1960, as an illustrious date that will be ever engraved in your hearts, a date whose meaning you will proudly explain to your children, so that they in turn might relate to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren the glorious history of our struggle for freedom" (Lumumba).
"Industry, primarily large-scale mining of copper, cobalt, uranium, diamonds, and other minerals, advanced under the control of holding companies managed by Belgian executives and engineers on behalf of Belgian and other European and American investors...the Belgians did little, and late, to prepare the Congolese for independence by developing civil society and providing opportunities for higher education, senior management roles, and political experience. This was the crucial difference from many other African colonies; the Congolese were excluded from all but subordinate positions in government, business, and the military" (Lipsey).
"At independence in June 1960, there was not a single Congolese army officer, and the number of university-educated professionals in the population of some fourteen million could be counted on two hands. There was no Congolese doctor, just one lawyer" (Lipsey).
"Yet within days [of Independence], soldiers of the Congolese army mutinied, demanding increased pay and the removal of white officers from their ranks. When Belgium intervened militarily, more soldiers rebelled. Many of these soldiers gravitated toward the radical nationalist Prime Minister Patrice Emery Lumumba" (Hurst).