Étienne Davignon is charged with participation in war crimes in relation to killing of then PM Patrice Lumumba
A former Belgian diplomat, 93, should stand trial over alleged complicity in the 1961 murder of Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of what was then the newly independent Congolese state, a Brussels court has ruled.
Étienne Davignon, the only person still alive among 10 Belgians the Lumumba family accuses of involvement in the killing, is charged with participation in war crimes.
The decision, which follows a surprise referral by the Brussels prosecutor last June, can be appealed against. Davignon, a former vice-president of the European Commission, has denied the charges.
Lumumba’s grandson, Mehdi Lumumba, told Agence France-Presse on Tuesday that he was relieved to hear about the court’s decision. “Belgium is finally confronting its history,” he said.
