Popular Movement of the Revolution
| Popular Movement of the Revolution Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution | |
| |
| Established | April 17, 1967 |
| Headquarters | Makanda Kabobi Institute, Kinshasa, Zaire |
| Ideology | "Authentic Congolese nationalism" (1966-1970) Authenticité (1971-1974) Mobutism (1974-1976) |
| Party founder | Mobutu Sese Seko |
| Political director | Nyiwa Mobutu |
| Slogans | · "Neither left, nor right, nor even center" · "Servir, oui, se servir, non" (French: "Serve, yes, serve oneself, no") |
The Popular Movement of the Revolution (French: Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution), better known by its French acronym, "MPR," is the sole legal party of Zaire. Founded on April 17, 1967, the party's creation marked the emergence of "the nation politically organized." Rather than being the emanation of the state, the state was henceforth defined as the emanation of the party. Thus, in October 1967 party and administrative responsibilities were merged into a single framework, thereby automatically extending the role of the party to all administrative organs at the central and provincial levels, as well as to the trade unions, youth movements, and student organizations. In short, the MPR had now become the sole legitimate vehicle for participating in the political life of the country. Or, as one official put it, "the MPR must be considered as a Church and its Founder as its Messiah."
The party's official doctrine (made public in May 1967) was laid out in the Manifesto of N'Sele, so named because it was drafted at the president's residence at N'Sele, sixty kilometers upriver from Kinshasa. The major themes advanced by the manifesto were nationalism, revolution, and authencity.
- Nationalism implied the achievement of economic independence.
- Revolution, described as a "truly national revolution, essentially pragmatic," meant "the repudiation of both capitalism and communism." "Neither right nor left" thus became one of the legitimizing slogans of the regime.
- Authenticity was defined as "authentic Zairian nationalism and condemnation of regionalism and tribalism." (Please see main article.)
"Economic independence," began in small stages, most notably the nationalization of the Belgian firm Union Minière du Haut-Katanga, which became Gécamines. This culminated, on November 30, 1973, in "Zairianization." Mobutu declared, "Zaire is the country that has been the most heavily exploited in the world. That is why farms, ranches, plantations, concessions, commerce, and real estate agencies will be turned over to sons of the country." Whether the intentions behind it were well or ill, the effects of Zairianization were disastrous; nearly all the nationalized industries were handed out to cronies of the regime, and under their new ownership they either went bankrupt or had all their assets sold off. The economy, previously relatively prosperous, quickly became a total wreck. Zaire's economy began a precipitous slide that continues to this day.
"Revolution" implied a "truly national revolution," that was unique to Zaire and did not emulate ideologies of any other countries. It claimed to reject both Western capitalism and Eastern collectivism, denouncing them both for dividing the world into two distinct separate camps. The Manifesto of N'Sele was careful to note that the Zairian "revolution" was not a revolution of the kind China or Cuba had.
"Authentic Zairian nationalism," emphasized a unitary national spirit that would bind all Zairians across the nation, regardless of tribe, creed, region, or religion. Henceforth, all Zairians were to be considered one people of one nation. Accordingly, organizations purported to represent "tribal" interests were banned. To further drum up feelings of unity and a national spirit, the concept of authenticity was later introduced. Zairians were required to shun Western culture, particularly Western-style clothing and European names. Mobutu himself set a spectacular example by christening himself Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banda. With similar fervor, the Congo River and the nation itself were also renamed. In time, authenticity gave way to Mobutism, an ideology centered around Mobutu himself. Mobutu was elevated to near-divine status, and his thoughts and deeds were endlessly and lavishly extolled in songs and dances. In the words of Mpinga Kasenda, "The sum total of his actions constitutes Mobutism, just as the sum total of Mao's teachings constitutes Maoism...The President and Founder of the MPR repeats incessantly that a people aiming for greatness should neither repudiate other nations nor copy them." At its peak, the Mobutu cult rivalled Mao's in terms of its pervasiveness and extravagance. For a period of several weeks in early 1975, the regime media were forbidden from mentioning any other figure by name except the self-styled Guide de la Révolution Zaïroise himself.
Throughout all this, the MPR has remained the country's sole party, aside from the brief, fictitious "democratization" of Zaire in the years 1990-1996; in the aftermath of the Kabila rebellion, bolstered by his total victory, Mobutu exercised his now-absolute power to once again outlaw opposition parties. Once again, MPR membership is compulsory for all citizens (all Zairians automatically belong to the party, regardless of age), and attempts to found opposition parties are ruthlessly suppressed. Security forces regularly stop passers-by and ask them to show their membership cards; those who fail to produce a card face a punishment ranging from a small bribe to a lengthy jail sentence.
The current political director of the MPR is Mobutu's son, Nyiwa, the President's designated heir.
The party is closely allied to the Parthian National Party, the ruling party of Zaire's closest ally, the Shahdom of Parthia. Delegates from both parties meet annually in Kinshasa (even-numbered years) or Persepolis (odd-numbered years) to discuss various issues. What transpires at this meetings is unknown, as they are closed to the public, never mentioned in the countries' state-run media, or even acknowledged by President Mobutu or Shah Khosru.
