Jacques Masangu-a-Mwanza (born 20 November 1928) is a Congolese and Katangese politician and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

Early career

Jacques Masangu, originating from Katanga, attended the Solvay Institute of the

Université Libre de Bruxelles The (French language, French, ; lit. Free University of Brussels; abbreviated ULB) is a French-speaking research university in Brussels, Belgium. It has three campuses: the ''Solbosch'' campus (in the City of Brussels and Ixelles), the ''Plain ...

where he graduated in sociology and diplomatic law in 1960. Masangu was elected a Senator in the national Senate at the time of independence on 30 June 1960. He became the First Vice-president of the Congolese Senate in

Léopoldville Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-growing megacities, with an estimated population of 17 million ...

, the country's capital, on 22 June 1960. He won the election for First Vice-president with 40 votes (51%) against Michel Denge who obtained 37 votes (48%) and Joseph Okito who obtained 1 vote (1%).

State of Katanga

On 11 July 1960, Katangese provincial president

Moïse Tshombe Moïse Kapenda Tshombe (sometimes written Tshombé; 10 November 1919 – 29 June 1969) was a List of people from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congolese businessman and politician. He served as the president of the secessionist State of ...

declared the mineral-rich province independent as the

State of Katanga The State of Katanga (; ), also known as the Republic of Katanga, was a breakaway state that proclaimed its independence from Republic of Congo (Léopoldville), Congo-Léopoldville on 11 July 1960 under Moïse Tshombe, leader of the local CO ...

. On 15 July, Masangu rallied to Tshombe's side and was sent out to

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, capital of the former colonising country

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, to represent the new state as the Resident Minister of the

to the

European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...

. The office was named the Permanent Delegation to the European Common Market. In March 1961, mediation efforts between Léopoldville and Élisabethville were undertaken by Malagasy President

Philibert Tsiranana Philibert Tsiranana (18 October 1912 – 16 April 1978) was a Malagasy politician and leader who served as the seventh prime minister of Madagascar from 1958 to 1959, and then later the first president of Madagascar from 1959 to 1972. Duri ...

Joseph Kasa-Vubu Joseph Kasa-Vubu, alternatively Joseph Kasavubu, ( – 24 March 1969) was a Congolese politician who served as the first President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (the Republic of the Congo until 1964) from 1960 until 1965. A member of ...

Joseph Iléo Joseph Iléo (15 September 1921 – 19 September 1994), subsequently Authenticité (Zaire), Zairianised as Sombo Amba Iléo, was a Congolese politician and was prime minister for two periods. Early life Joseph Iléo was born on 15 Septembe ...

and

Cyrille Adoula Cyrille Adoula (13 September 1921 – 24 May 1978) was a Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congolese trade unionist and politician. He was the prime minister of the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), Republic of the Congo, from 2 August 1961 ...

of the central authorities met with the Katangese authorities in the Malagasy capital

Antananarivo Antananarivo (Malagasy language, Malagasy: ; French language, French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known ...

. The outcomes were favourable to the Katangese side. When the Katangese armed troops took the city of Manono the same month, Tshombe was at the height of his glory. A follow-up conference to the Antananarivo conference was planned in Coquilhatville in April-Mai 1961. Masangu warned Tshombe about the possible dangers of going to the city in hostile territory. At the conference, Tshombe and Katangese Minister for Foreign Affairs

Évariste Kimba Évariste Leon Kimba Mutombo (16 July 1926 – 2 June 1966), better known as Évariste Kimba, was a Congolese journalist and politician who served as Foreign Minister of the State of Katanga from 1960 to 1963 and Prime Minister of the Democrati ...

were arrested by the Léopoldville authorities. Masangu and his

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

-based colleague

Dominique Diur Dominique Diur (1929—1980) was a Congolese and Katangese politician who was one of the founders of the CONAKAT party. Early life Diur grew up in the Belgian Congo. His father was a dignitary of the chieftaincy of Kayembe Mukulu. He followed ...

convened in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

with

, Mario Cardoso, and Julien Kasongo, representatives of the central government, to obtain Tshombe's and Kimba's release. After the reestablishment of diplomatic ties between Léopoldville and Brussels, the Belgian government requested the Katangese office in Brussels to close its doors. The office in Brussels closed on 26 January 1962 and was replaced by the Cultural and Economic Office of Katanga. On 7 April 1962, Masangu resigned and was replaced by Odilon Mwenda. In December 1962, he moved back to Léopoldville as a Senator for the central government. Back at the service of the Léopoldville government, Masangu moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

as a Minister Counselor for Congo, where he only stayed for two months.

Diplomatic and commercial career

In 1963, Masangu was appointed as a Deputy Prime Minister charged with social affairs in the government of

and, in that capacity, attended the

State funeral of John F. Kennedy The state funeral of U.S. President John F. Kennedy took place in Washington, D.C., during the three days that followed his assassination on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Kennedy's body was brought back to Washington after his ...

. His Chef de Cabinet, Oscar Mudiay, was later appointed by the Léopoldville government as a special commissioner charged with the installation of institutions in Northern Katanga. During the period of different crises within the Balubakat party in 1963–1964, Masangu played an important role in their settlement as a prominent member of the party at the central government. From 1966 to 1977, he held several diplomatic positions. As the ambassador to the

German Federal Republic BRD ( ; English: FRG/Federal Republic of Germany) is an unofficial abbreviation for the Federal Republic of Germany, informally known in English as West Germany until 1990, and just Germany since reunification. It was occasionally used in the Fede ...

, Masangu attended the state funeral of

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

Konrad Adenauer Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman and politician who served as the first Chancellor of Germany, chancellor of West Germany from 1949 to 1963. From 1946 to 1966, he was the first leader of th ...

. Tshombe, then sentenced to death in absentia and living in exile in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

Francoist Spain Francoist Spain (), also known as the Francoist dictatorship (), or Nationalist Spain () was the period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death i ...

, had the opportunity to sign Adenauer's book of condolence at the West German embassy in Madrid. As a result, Masangu was recalled to Congo on 17 May 1967. Later, Masangu became the representative to the

IAEA The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. It was established in 1957 ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, ambassador to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and representative to the

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...

. He presented his credentials to Italian president

Giuseppe Saragat Giuseppe Saragat (; 19 September 1898 – 11 June 1988) was an Italian politician and statesman who served as President of Italy from 1964 to 1971. Early life Saragat was born on 19 September 1898 in Turin, Piedmont, Kingdom of Italy, to Sard ...

on 17 October 1969. During his time in Italy, Congolese President

Mobutu Sese Seko Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa za Banga ( ; born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu; 14 October 1930 – 7 September 1997), often shortened to Mobutu Sese Seko or Mobutu and also known by his initials MSS, was a Congolese politician and military officer ...

appointed him as the chairman of the board of directors of

Air Congo Air Congo S.A. is the flag carrier airline of the Democratic Republic of the Congo launched on 1 December 2024, with its hub at N'djili Airport in Kinshasa. The airline announced it would commence operations by serving domestic destinations. The ...

. Regarding the appointment, Congolese newspaper ''L'étoile'' commented that Mobutu "has shown appreciation for worthy efforts of Congolese diplomats abroad." Afterwards, Masangu was appointed ambassador to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Masangu ended his diplomatic career in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, where he was Congo's ambassador to the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, agent at the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...

(ICJ), and member of the board of directors of the

Permanent Court of Arbitration The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered at the Peace Palace, in The Hague, Netherlands. Unlike a judicial court in the traditional sense, the PCA provides administrative support in international ...

. He represented his country at the precedent-setting case by the ICJ about Abdoulaye Yerodia Ndombasi. In Congo, he was president of the Board of Directors of the ''Société Financière de Développement'' (SOFIDE). Masangu founded Lubumbashi-based radio and television outlet Kyondo Radio Télévision in 2011 and supported the organisation after a fire in 2019.

Personal life

Jacques Masangu is the father of , former governor of the Central Bank of Congo. Furthermore, the brother of Jacques Masangu's spouse, Roger Kabulo, was the

Chef de Cabinet In some Francophone countries and international organisations, a ( French; literally 'head of office') is a senior official working for a high-ranking political or administrative figure such as a government minister. They are typically responsib ...

of Balubakat politician Jason Sendwe.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Masangu, Jacques 1928 births Government ministers of the State of Katanga People of the Congo Crisis People from the State of Katanga Government ministers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Members of the Senate (Democratic Republic of the Congo) Living people 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo people