Patrice Lumumba was the undeniable legend of Congolese independence. He worked tirelessly to provide help and respite to the entire Congolese population who, like its partners in different parts of Africa and Asia, was the victim of persecution and financial abuse and political slavery of the colonialists. He dedicated his life to ensuring that a normal Congolese continues to lead a normal life.
For each of his actions, a horrible and overwhelming incident awaited him and his charming family. In 1960, he became the first minister of the young democracy, just to be murdered the following year.
Among the best-organized political killings of all time, his death was not known to the public until a few days later. Indeed, even after his assassination, his body was "insidiously" exhumed and decomposed with the help of a corrosion. Anyway, he has become a legend never forgotten in the Congo and around the world.
According to Karen Bouwer in her famous book - Gender and Decolonization in the Congo: The Legacy of Patrice Lumumba, the majority of Africans consider him to be the second most important African leader of the twentieth century after Nelson Mandela.
Who was the wife of this icon and why did she protest naked in the city of Leopoldville (now Kinshasa) after the death of her husband?
Pauline Opango Lumumba was born on January 1, 1937 in a village in the Kasai region of Congo. She was the third wife of Patrice Lumumba. They were married on March 15, 1951. Their marriage had periods of skirmishing and separation due to the strange habits and imprisonment of Patrice Lumumba.
Bouwer describes this as:
"Her husband was rarely home, and when he was, he was locked in his own world, either to read or to write. Because she was illiterate, Pauline did not understand the attraction of this solitary activity. Her strange husband slept little, drank a lot of coffee and took cold showers. When he was not working, he volunteered at the library, met with a number of organizations, or wrote articles for publication. "
Despite this, among the wives of Patrice, Pauline was certainly unique since their marriage gave birth to four children - Patrice, Julienne, Roland and Marie-Christine. The link between the couple was divine. She became one of the first members of the Congolese National Movement (MNC) and was always there to entertain the endless visitors of Patrice Lumumba.
Pauline Opango Lumumba had the honor of being with her husband in the same car when he was arrested while trying to escape to his political stronghold in Stanleyville (now Kisangani). Patrice Lumumba was arrested and beaten to astonishment, then dragged by death agents who murdered him, buried him, exhumed him and poured acid on his body.
All this has been done to make sure he becomes a forgotten man. All the while, Pauline gave birth to a premature baby and the family was placed under house arrest. The child died a few months later. It was the most trying time for the family. When Patrice Lumumba died, Pauline was only 23 years old.
Pauline led others to mourn her husband at a funeral in Leopoldville and to protest the murder of her husband. However, her husband's body was not given to her and she did not have the opportunity to visit her husband's grave. Pauline was forced to flee with others to a political refugee camp built by the United Nations.
There she protested vehemently, her breasts bare. This act is not particularly strange in Africa. In Nigeria, during the women's riot in Aba in 1929, women protested naked against British forces. In Kenya, Wangari Maathai led other women to protest naked against the government of Daniel Arap Moi.
With Pauline in the vicinity, Patrice's assassins did not have peace. So, she was driven out of the country. She ended up in Egypt where she met President Nasser who took care of her family. She also traveled to Belgium and France, then returned to Congo after the government recognized Patrice Lumumba as a national hero.
Pauline can be described as a heroine in her own right. Until her death in 2014, she defended the same values and honor that Patrice Lumumba had defended. Moreover, for about 54 years Pauline lived after the death of her husband, she did not remarry. She remained a widow because her love for her husband was indescribable.
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