Belgian court sends ex-diplomat, 93, to trial over 1961 murder of Congo leader

Family of then PM, Patrice Lumumba, welcome decision to charge Étienne Davignon as ‘beginning of a reckoning’ A former Belgian diplomat, 93, should stand trial over alleged complicity in the 1961 murder of Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of what was then the newly independent Congolese state, a Brussels court has ruled. Étienne Davignon, the only person still alive among 10 Belgians the Lumumba family accuses of involvement in the killing, is charged with participation in war crimes. The decision, which follows a surprise referral by the Brussels prosecutor last June, can be appealed against. Davignon, a former vice-president of the European Commission, has denied the charges. In a statement the Lumumba family welcomed what they called a significant step: “For our family, this is not the end of a long fight, it is the beginning of a reckoning that history has long demanded.” Yema Lumumba, a granddaughter of the assassinated leader, told reporters: “The fact that all this time has passed does not mean it is done and we will never get to know the truth. It is also very important for the legal Belgian system to start confronting its own responsibilities regarding what happen