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According to homosociety, the Republic of the Congo or Congo Brazzaville is an independent country in the central-western part of sub-Saharan Africa, around the equator. Africa. To the south and east, the country is bounded by the Congo River and its tributary the Ubangi River. The Congo River in western Central Africa forms the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The country also has borders with Gabon to the west, Cameroon and the Central African Republic to the north and Cabinda (Angola) to the southwest. The country has a short coastline towards the Atlantic Ocean. The capital, Brazzaville, is located in the southern part of the country on the Congo River, just opposite Kinshasa, the capital of DR Congo.

The republic was formerly a French colony and gained independence in 1960.

The country is divided into 4 regions: the plains by the coast; the central plateau, separated from the former by a mountain range at an altitude of 800 meters; The valley of the Congo River in the northeast and an extensive swamp area. The entire sparsely populated, central area is covered by dense rainforest. 2/3 of the population is concentrated in the south, along the railway from Brazzaville to Pointe-Noir. Forestry, together with agriculture, employs 2/3 of the population. There are rich deposits of oil, lead, gold, zinc, copper and diamonds. The environment is significantly degraded by the uncontrolled growth of cities, the accumulation of waste, the deficient sewerage, the spread of infectious diseases, the pollution, deforestation and extinction of the fauna.

Originally, the country was inhabited by pygmies and bushmen, but in the 16th century, present-day Congo became the haunt of the Bantu kingdoms of Luango and Kacongo, close allies with the region’s great power Manicongo. The Portuguese colonization efforts were avoided, and for three centuries these kingdoms participated in the slave trade as intermediaries and suppliers to the French and English; an activity that was later taken over by the bateke kingdom of Anzico.

Congo or Congo has several meanings: Congo River – a river in Africa Democratic Republic of the Congo – an independent country in Africa Republic of the Congo – an independent country in Africa Kikongo – a language Congo people – a people, also called Bakongo Congo Kingdom – a great empire in medieval Africa Congo – a book by Michael Crichton Congo – a film adaptation of Crichton’s book Congo – a monkey who learned to paint.

TIMELINE:

1880 – French troops under Savorgnan de Brazza begin the bloody colonization of the country. 2/3 of the indigenous population was exterminated in the first quarter of the century.

1944 – Brazzaville hosts a meeting of the Free French Forces and representatives of France’s African colonies. The Brazzaville Declaration was to redefine relations between France and its African colonies after World War II.

1960 – Introduction to “decolonization” is promoted by the French to the monk Fulbert Youlou, who, as leader of the Democratic Union for the Defense of African Interests, became the first president of the independent Congo.

1963 – The popular organizations never accept Fulbert Youlous’ neocolonistic policies, and the protests against corruption and the atrocities against the unions explode in a popular uprising, the so-called “three golden days”, from 13 to 15 August 1963.

1969 – January 1. The war caused by disagreements between the Revolutionary Movement and the country’s army, trained and armed by the French, led it to the resignation of Massemba Débats. He was replaced by the young Major Marien N’Gouabi, who represented the left wing of the army.

1977 – March 18. N’Gouabi was assassinated by a group of conspirators, led by former President Massemba Débat. However, the coup plotters failed to seize power and Massemba Débat was executed.

1978 – Under the new president, Colonel Joachim Yombi Opango, the official ascetic political line changes. After charges of corruption and abuse of power, he was forced to resign on February 6, 1979. He was replaced by Denis Sassou N’Guesso. He launched a morale campaign in the public sector and implemented administrative and ministerial reforms.

1982 – Congo’s economy improves – partly due to oil exports, which financed 49.44% of public spending.

1988 – The oil was extracted in collaboration with French, North American and Italian companies and together exported about 8 million tons of crude oil. President N’Guesso took a pragmatic foreign policy stance; economic relations were maintained with Eastern Europe, the United States and France. Congo played a key role in the negotiations between Angola, South Africa and Cuba, and the agreement signed on 13 December

1988 in Brazzaville enabled Namibia’s independence.

1991 – In July, André Milongo takes over as Prime Minister, pending the holding of presidential elections. This decision led to street riots and it was agreed to form a transitional government with the participation of the army.

1993 – In the hasty elections in May, the ruling party wins 62 seats against the opposition’s 49. The opposition accused the government of electoral fraud, and new clashes between protesters and soldiers left 6 dead. Lissouba appointed retired military man Jaques Yhombi-Opango as the new prime minister, leading the opposition to form a “shadow cabinet” led by Bernard Kolelas.

1993 – New riots in July and December lead to the killings of 80 people. On the other hand, the government continued the course towards bankruptcy and paid only the civil servants 7 out of 12 monthly salaries.

1994 – In January, the army resorted to the use of artillery to defend itself against the armed opposition groups. The riots killed more than 100 people. An agreement between the opposition and the government, reached in mid-March, formed the framework for a ceasefire.

1994 – In July, the election of Kolelas as mayor of Brazzaville helps to calm the mood and a public “fraternity ceremony” was held the following month.

1995 – The year was marked by the attempt to find a permanent agreement to secure the disarmament of the anti-government urban guerrillas and possibly try to get them integrated into the national army. On 19 February, a general strike began with the demand for payment of the withheld wages. On March 10, a solution was reached, but the plan was rejected by public servants because it heralded a reduction in wages against a corresponding reduction in working hours.

1997 – June. The first fighting broke out when authorities tried to disarm and arrest Denis Sassou N’Guesso and some of his supporters. After four months of civil war, rebel forces ousted President Lissouba, backed by Angolan troops. In many cases, the fighting led to looting raids against the local population. N’Guesso formed a new government in Brazzaville and immediately set about fighting the insurgency led by Kolelas.

1998 – During the year, N’Guesso reinforces his army with weapons purchased from the Russian mafia and appoints Israeli officers to lead his personal security guard.

1999 – A ceasefire is signed between N’Guesso and the rebels on November 16. This agreement was further extended on December 29 after mediation by Gabonese President Omar Bongo.

2000 – In accordance with the agreement, N’Guesso released prisoners and in January thousands of rebels were disarmed.

2000 – In February, Kolelas reaffirms his recognition of N’Guesso as President.

2001 – In December, 11 cases of infection with the highly dangerous Ebola virus were detected, despite extensive sanitary controls at the border crossings. It is believed that it was an infected woman who came across the border from Gabon. The health service isolated a total of 94 people who had been in contact with the infected.

2002 – In early January, questions were raised as to whether an acute hemorrhagic fever had broken out in the Republic of Congo, and an international investigation team was sent to the Mbomo district to confirm or disprove the suspicion.

2002 – In December, increased mortality was observed among gorillas and chimpanzees in the Mbomo district of the Republic of Congo. Samples from these animals showed that it was an infection with the Ebola virus, one of the viruses that can cause hemorrhagic bleeding fever in humans.

2003-04 – The UN continued its relief programs, concentrating on the refugee camps, and curbing the AIDS epidemic and poverty. New cases of Ebola cost 136 lives.

2003 – February 17. Ebola was verified in five samples taken from patients from Kellé, from which the vast majority of patients in the outbreak come.

2005 – In April, the government announced that a group of officers arrested in January for theft of weapons had been preparing for a coup. After 8 years in exile, Kolelas returned to the Congo in October 2005 to attend the funeral of his wife. The former prime minister sentenced to death for war crimes was granted amnesty in November.

2005 – December 26. Thousands of people lost their homes after heavy rains triggered landslides and caused floods in Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo. That’s what local officials said Monday. There were reports that a boy had died during the floods, which have been particularly severe in the densely populated slums of the city’s northern districts. In the Maman Mbouale district, where houses have been illegally erected, many houses were washed away by landslides. Some residents were locked inside their houses for several hours before coming out with the help of rescue teams. In Mpila, another part of Brazaville, the river water rose by up to four meters, and here the residents survived only by going up on rooftops. (/ ritzau / Reuters)

2006 – In January, Congo becomes President of the African Union.

2006 – The guerrilla movement the National Committee for Resistance, which had participated in several civil wars in 1998-2002, decided to enter political life under the name of the Republican National Council. The leader of the new party, Frédéric Bintsangou, stated that he supported the plans for disarmament throughout the country.

2008 – July 30. Greenpeace reveals how the countries on the Congo River are being drained of resources through timber exports. The multinational timber giant Danzer Group, one of the largest players in the Congo area’s timber industry, is driving profits out of Africa and into foreign bank accounts, internal documents from the company show. Thus, the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and the neighboring state of the Republic of the Congo are cheated of significant tax revenue. Download pdf here.

2008 – 6 August. A group of gorillas have survived in the northern part of the Republic of Congo – so many that environmental activists can double their estimates of the total population of the animal. This was stated by the environmental organization Wildlife Conservation Society. A new census revealed more than 125,000 western lowland gorillas in an area of ​​47,000 square kilometers in the Central African country, the organization said. Estimates from the 1980s indicated that fewer than 100,000 specimens of the great ape had survived, and many experts believed that this number had since been halved due to disease and hunting. “The new counts show that the northern part of the Republic of Congo is home to most gorillas,” said Steven Sanderson, president of the Wildlife Conservation Society. – “It also shows that nature conservation in the Republic of Congo works.