Belgian prosecutors are seeking to put 92-year-old former diplomat Etienne Davignon on trial for his alleged role in the 1961 killing of Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba.
Davignon is accused of involvement in the “unlawful detention and transfer” of Lumumba and his “humiliating and degrading treatment”. Lumumba, the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, was executed by a firing squad with the tacit backing of Belgium, the former colonial power.
His body was later dissolved in acid, but a gold-crowned tooth was recovered and handed over to his family by Belgian authorities in 2022.
Lumumba’s daughter, Juliana, welcomed the development, saying, “We’re moving in the right direction. What we’re seeking is, first and foremost, the truth”. A magistrate will decide whether Davignon should face trial, with a hearing scheduled for January 2026.
