Kabila likely assassinated in Kinshasa

Reports out of Africa say Laurent Kabila, populist leader of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), was assassinated by his own bodyguards during an attempted coup at his palace home in the capital city of Kinshasa.

The attack came as Kabila was about to launch a military strike against two rebel-held towns, one in the north and the other in the south, in an attempt to secure military positions.

In the wake of his demise, no one is sure who holds power in Kinshasa, but if Kabila’s son, Joseph, remains alive, he might assume control with help from the Department of the Interior.

The mineral-rich country, famous for the copper belt it shares with neighbouring Zambia, had mining companies lining up at its door after Kabila assumed power in 1997. Now, after his death, companies doing business with state-owned Gecamines (Gnrale des carrires et des mines) could see some changes in ownership.

Paul Conibear, chief operating officer of Vancouver-based Tenke Mining, was on his way to his company’s 55%-owned Fungurume property, near Lubumbashi, in Katanga province, when news of Kabila’s death reached him in Johannesburg.

“Everything has been really calm,” says Conibear, adding that he would not travel to Lubumbashi until the weekend. “But I’m sure there will be some changes.

“We’ve kept 50 people on staff [in DRC] over the past two and a half years, so we’ve ridden the storms up and down. . . . It’s pretty unpredictable, but that’s the Congo.”

Tenke is in negotiations with Gecamines to build a pilot plant to advance Fungurume. Gecamines owns the remaining 45% of the project, though Australia’s BHP has an option to earn a 45% interest from Tenke.

Kabila rose to power by leading a rebel uprising in 1997 that toppled the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko, who, for more than 30 years, had terrorized the DRC, then known as Zaire. Kabila’s rise to power was thought to be a harbinger of change, but he, too, fell into the mold of his predecessor. Kabila will leave a legacy of war, human rights violations, nepotism, and wide-spread corruption.