A special presidential division ( French Division Spéciale Présidentielle ) is the selective formation ( division ) of the armed forces of Zaire , created by decree of the country's president Mobutu Sese Seko in 1985 [1] .
| Special Presidential Division | |
|---|---|
| Years of existence | 1985 - 1997 |
| A country |  Zaire |
| Subordination | Ministry of Defense of Zaire |
| Included in | Ground forces of Zaire |
| Type of | Special Operations Forces |
| Number | 5,000-10,000 |
| Dislocation | Kinshasa |
| Participation in | Civil War in Rwanda First Congolese War |
| Commanders | |
| Famous commanders | Mobutu Sese Seko |
Joseph Kabil , the current president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo , has a guard like that.
Content
History
From 1985 to 1986, the formation was called the Special Presidential Brigade , in 1986, in connection with organizational and staffing events, the number of personnel of the brigade was increased, as a result of which the Special Presidential Division was formed [2] . The soldiers of this compound were trained by Israeli specialists. The monetary allowance of the soldiers and officers of the Special Presidential Division was small, but they paid it regularly [3] . This formation was commanded by Mobutu's cousin, General Etienne Nzimbi Ngbalé Congo Bas Bas [4] .
Participation in hostilities
After the Rwandan Defense Forces invaded northern Rwanda at the start of the civil war , Mobutu sent several hundred soldiers of the Special Presidential Division to assist the government of Juvenal Habyariman [5] [6] . In 1993, the Special Presidential Division was sent to suppress riots in Masisi , North Kivu , but the conflict only worsened after division soldiers sided with the Hutu people against the Bahunde indigenous people [7] . In a 1996 United Nations report, Prime Minister Zaire Etienne Chisedekedi and his staff were monitored and harassed by the Special Presidential Division. From 1996 to 1997, division soldiers took an active part in the First Congolese War on the side of President Mobutu Sese Seko. In May 1997, the Special Presidential Division was disbanded after President Mobutu Sese Seko fled the country, fleeing reprisals from the rebels who won the civil war [8] .
Notes
- ↑ "Report on the situation of human rights in Zaire, prepared by the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Roberto Garretón, in accordance with Commission resolution 1994/87 ” , United Nations Economic and Social Council
- ↑ “The Stalled Transition” , Human Rights Watch , 1997
- ↑ Zaire: A Country Study , “Army”
- ↑ Martin Meredith (2005) The Fate of Africa: From the Hopes of Freedom to the Heart of Despair, a History of Fifty Years of Independence , New York: Public Affairs, p. 535
- ↑ Linda Melvern, Conspiracy to Murder: The Rwandan Genocide , Verso: New York, 2004, ISBN 1-85984-588-6 , p. 14
- ↑ Zaire: A Country Study , “Zaire as a Military Aid Donor”
- ↑ Mahmood Mamdani (2001) When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism, and the Genocide in Rwanda , Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, pp. 252-253
- ↑ "Communication No. 542/1993: Democratic Republic of the Congo. 04/16/96. ” , Human Rights Committee on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Literature
- Central Intelligence Agency, 'Zaire: The Military Under Mobutu [Deleted],' document created 1/11/1988, accessible via Freedom of Information Act Electronic Reading Room, http://www.foia.cia.gov/ .
- Gérard Prunier, From Genocide to Continental War: The “Congolese” Conflict and the Crisis of Contemporary Africa, C. Hurst & Co, 2009, ISBN 1-85065-523-5 .