Jean-Blaise Kololo
Encyclopedia
Jean-Blaise Kololo was a politician and diplomat in the Republic of the Congo
. Kololo was Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation
from 1991 to 1992 in the transitional government of Prime Minister André Milongo
.
(MCDDI), led by Bernard Kolélas
, during the early 1990s, and he participated in the February–June 1991 National Conference. At the National Conference, he was included on the committee for the drafting of internal regulations. At the end of the conference, he was appointed to the transitional government of Prime Minister André Milongo as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.
Kololo remained a member of the MCDDI until splitting from it in the mid-1990s to form a new party, the Congolese Alliance for Unity and People's Freedoms (ACULP). He was then appointed as High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the midst of the June–October 1997 civil war, he urged France
to not recognize any "political leaders with armed militias" in late July 1997.
During the December 1998 violence in Brazzaville
, Kololo fled the city's Bacongo neighborhood and spent three months hiding in the Pool Region
before arriving across the Congo River
in Kinshasa
; he was "in a state of total exhaustion" by that point and was hospitalized in Kinshasa. An emissary of President Denis Sassou Nguesso
offered to pay for Kololo to be evacuated to Europe for urgent medical treatment, but the Belgian airline Sabena
refused to accept him as a passenger on 27 April 1999 out of concern that he would die during the flight. Kololo then died of amoebic dysentery
in Kinshasa on 28 April.
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
. Kololo was Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
from 1991 to 1992 in the transitional government of Prime Minister André Milongo
André Milongo
André Ntsatouabantou Milongo was a Congolese politician who served as Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo from June 1991 to August 1992. He was chosen by the 1991 National Conference to lead the country during its transition to multiparty elections, which were held in 1992...
.
Political career
Kololo, a professor of political science, was a member of the Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral DevelopmentCongolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development
The Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development is a political party in the Republic of the Congo, led by Bernard Kolélas....
(MCDDI), led by Bernard Kolélas
Bernard Kolélas
Bernard Bakana Kolélas was a Congolese politician and President of the Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development...
, during the early 1990s, and he participated in the February–June 1991 National Conference. At the National Conference, he was included on the committee for the drafting of internal regulations. At the end of the conference, he was appointed to the transitional government of Prime Minister André Milongo as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.
Kololo remained a member of the MCDDI until splitting from it in the mid-1990s to form a new party, the Congolese Alliance for Unity and People's Freedoms (ACULP). He was then appointed as High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the midst of the June–October 1997 civil war, he urged France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to not recognize any "political leaders with armed militias" in late July 1997.
During the December 1998 violence in Brazzaville
Brazzaville
-Transport:The city is home to Maya-Maya Airport and a railway station on the Congo-Ocean Railway. It is also an important river port, with ferries sailing to Kinshasa and to Bangui via Impfondo...
, Kololo fled the city's Bacongo neighborhood and spent three months hiding in the Pool Region
Pool Region
Pool is a department of the Republic of the Congo in the southeastern part of the country. It borders the departments of Bouenza, Lékoumou, and Plateaux, and internationally, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It also surrounds the commune district of the national capital, Brazzaville. The...
before arriving across the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
in Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
; he was "in a state of total exhaustion" by that point and was hospitalized in Kinshasa. An emissary of President Denis Sassou Nguesso
Denis Sassou Nguesso
Denis Sassou Nguesso is a Congolese politician who has been the President of Congo-Brazzaville since 1997; he was previously President from 1979 to 1992. During his first period as President, he headed the single-party regime of the Congolese Labour Party for 12 years...
offered to pay for Kololo to be evacuated to Europe for urgent medical treatment, but the Belgian airline Sabena
Sabena
SABENA was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its bankruptcy in 2001, the newly formed SN Brussels Airlines took over part of SABENA's assets in February 2002, which then became Brussels Airlines...
refused to accept him as a passenger on 27 April 1999 out of concern that he would die during the flight. Kololo then died of amoebic dysentery
Amoebic dysentery
Amoebic dysentery is a type of dysentery caused primarily by the amoeba Entamoeba histolytica. Amoebic dysentery is transmitted through contaminated food and water. Amoebae spread by forming infective cysts which can be found in stools, and spread if whoever touches them does not sanitize their...
in Kinshasa on 28 April.