Brussels, June 17 2025. The family of Patrice Émery Lumumba – the first elected Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo and an iconic figure in the struggle for African independence – and its legal counsels welcome the Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office’s request to refer Mr Etienne Davignon to the Brussels Criminal Court (“Tribunal correctionnel de Bruxelles”).
This is a historic moment. For the first time, the facts surrounding the assassination by a former colonial power of an African leader of decolonisation will be subject to public and adversarial examination before a criminal court. This represents a significant judicial and political step forward, with profound implications for both memory and justice.
At today’s hearing, the Brussels Criminal Court’s Council Chamber (“Chambre du conseil”) noted the defendant’s intention to submit written arguments challenging the basis of the request for referral. By requesting the postponement of his case, Mr Davignon is attempting to evade his responsibilities and avoid facing a public trial, which the family regrets.
Finally, in order to allow the parties to exchange their arguments in writing, the chamber has postponed its examination until 20 January 2026. The case will therefore be heard on that date.
Since the complaint was filed on 23 June 2011, the Lumumba family has consistently demanded that the circumstances surrounding this assassination, perpetrated on 17 January 1961 in the then secessionist province of Katanga, in a context marked by post-colonial destabilisation, foreign interference, particularly by the former colonial power Belgium, and state silence. This phase of the criminal proceedings finally paves the way for judicial recognition of responsibility for this war crime, which is emblematic of the colonial legacy.
The long-awaited trial is not only a turning point in a lengthy and painful process, but also an essential milestone in the history of relations between Belgium and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is part of a broader movement towards historical truth, remembrance, social peace, and post-colonial justice.
The Lumumba family and their lawyers hope that this historic trial will break the silence, shed light on individual and institutional responsibilities, and create the conditions for an informed public debate on the tragic end of Patrice Lumumba, as well as on what it reveals about our shared past.
The official return of Patrice Emery Lumumba’s remains to his family by the Belgian State in June 2022, following a decision by a Belgian judge and with the support of the Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office, marked a crucial step in the mourning process for his children and grandchildren.
They also wish to reiterate that truth and justice are not only owed to the memory of Patrice Lumumba, but also to that of his companions in misfortune, Maurice Mpolo and Joseph Okito, as well as to all the victims of colonisation and its aftermath. While this trial cannot bring them back to life, it can finally establish legal responsibility for the crimes committed: the family seeks, above all, justice and truth, without being motivated by any desire for financial compensation.
The Lumumba family conveys deep appreciation to all the individuals, institutions, and organisations that have aided in this pursuit of justice, particularly the magistrates, lawyers, historians, journalists, human rights advocates, Belgian and Congolese citizens, and notably Mr. Ludo de Witte. Additionally, they thank the Belgian politicians who have played their part: Mr. Louis Michel, Ms. Sophie Wilmès, and Mr. Alexander De Croo.
The family also announced that a leading human rights NGO based in Berlin, “The European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights” (ECCHR), will be directly involved in the legal proceedings, with its Secretary General, Wolfgang Kaleck, of the Berlin Bar, having been appointed for this purpose.
The Lumumba family will remain vigilant and fully committed to ensuring that this historic trial lives up to the expectations of truth, memory, justice and reparation demanded by the moral and political stature of their father, Patrice Émery Lumumba.
