Talk:Mobutu Sese Seko

Mobutu and Greece
Does anyone have any further information on Mobutu's relationship with the Greek junta? I own and have read several books on the Mobutu era, and while numerous references are made to his relationship with the U.S., Belgium, France, the PRC, South Africa, Israel, the Arab states, etc., the only reference I've found to Greece is a passing mention of his visit to the country in the late 1960s (or early 1970s). Josh (talk) 22:48, 2 February 2020 (UTC)

Reference 35 is dead
The reference to http://www.concorde-jet.com/e_photos.php?ref=club_concorde2136 no longer works, the domain has been purchased by some generic insurance-selling outfit (apparently selling concorde insurance? regardless, not a useful reference for this artcile)  Not sure if a useful replacement for it exists or not...

Which name is it anyway
Since we now have two versions of his name in the article and a third in an external link that I just inserted, I thought I'd do the Google test to see which is most popular, I have not done any changes to the article though, since I find them all quite probable. I think a source directlz discussing the issue is needed. Here goes:

Pictures

 * Can someone upload a better free image of Mobutu? The one on here is pretty grainy for this quality of article. bwmcmaste (talk) 22:29, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

Misc
Using Google, no filters, with/without/ "duplicates" (as detected by Google)/Google groups with/Google groups without|same but not using "-wikipedia":
 * 1) "Mobutu Sese Seko Koko Ngbendu Wa Za Banga" -wikipedia: 107/29/3/2|366/35/3/2: This is the form used by Britannica.com.
 * 2) "Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku wa za Banga" -wikipedia: 76/19/0/0|96/24/0/0: This is the form we currently use, almost looks like its introduced by us. Google suggest that the correct spelling is the one in the next.
 * 3) "Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa za Banga" -wikipedia: 456/145/32/18|599/124/32/18: As you can see, this is the Google winner. It is also the form used by MSN Encarta and the last weblink that I added. My favourite. --Dittaeva 22:20, 29 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I don't know if it's even worth mentioning but this article got mentioned by the Zaire Businessman Scam email. One of the older scams, and certainly one of the dumbest. Thought you might find that amusing here.

United States
I think it would be important to add a few words about the fact that he was backed by the United States.65.95.83.10

I added something at the end of the kleptocracy paragraph because that's where I thought it fit the most. Maybe a new paragragh could be written though, about Mobutu's importance to the West in Africa during the Cold War. Red Star

This is Red Star again, somebody added a paragraph entitled "US government likes him", which of course sounded quite silly. I moved some of the info to Military coup, while adding the bit about the Belgians, but I'd like to see the source for his friendship with Pat Robertson. It could be added to Robertson's article too. In the meantime I put the sentence in the Early Years, I don't see where else it could belong. Red Star September 10 2005


 * In the current Mueller investigations it came to light that Paul Manafort had been a Mobutu adviser (which took my breath away). He made money from Mobutu - which is remarkable as Manafort was there to keep him on the side of the US but was obviously not paid by the US, instead by the Congolese people. Or you could see it as skimming off from US aid. Manafort is an evolving topic. 2001:8003:A921:6300:7403:F43C:3BA9:AB58 (talk) 06:23, 6 November 2017 (UTC)

Requested move
The reasons for move copied from the entry on the WP:RM page: --Francis Schonken 08:38, 8 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Talk:Mobutu Sésé Seko &mdash; Mobutu Sésé Seko → Mobutu Sese Seko – See:
 * Wikipedia talk:Naming conventions (use English) and
 * Village_pump_%28policy%29/Archive K


 * Add *Support or *Oppose followed by an optional one sentence explanation, then sign your vote with ~ 


 * Support move, see below for reasons. --Francis Schonken 08:51, 8 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Support. If the French wiki doesn't use acutes, then why does the English wiki. – AxSkov ( ☏ ) 09:39, 9 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Support. The books i own use Mobutu Sese Seko. --POY 15:09, 9 September 2005 (UTC)

This article has been renamed after the result of a move request. Dragons flight 00:14, 22 September 2005 (UTC)

Discussion

 * Add any additional comments

Appears that in French it is written thus: fr:Mobutu Sese Seko (even if that would be the way to approach it, which it is not currently). That English wikipedia is incorrect follows even more from Google search which turns out 256 instances of the Sésé variant; 171000 for the Sese variant (for English pages, excluding wikipedia from the search). Another example of wikipedians trying to "make" reality, instead of recording it. --Francis Schonken 08:51, 8 September 2005 (UTC)

Why is the French usage relevant? Sese Seko is obviously not a French name. There's nothing wrong with the anglicized form. Even the Lingala dictionary (Kawata Ashem Tem), with fancy academic spelling, uses the spelling Mobutu Sese Seko. ---moyogo 08:13, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

The legacy part of this article is biased, because it only gives the positive side and not the negative side like how many people were killed, how tyranical his rule was and other stuff.

Too little information
"The rumble in the jungle" legendary Ali vs Foreman fight is missing (which he used to clean his image), plus more information on his crimes, all of that is missing from this very short page.

Overthrow
I am not sure the argument that Tutsis were opposed to Mobutu due to his support of Rwandan extremists, is valid. Tusis were angered with him because he had let the National Conference withdraw collectively the citizenship of all Tutsi Congolese people, on charges of double-citizenship (which was - and still is - illegal in the country) with Rwanda. They were fighting for their citizenship rights. And the very opportunistic Kagame used their grievances as an excuse to invade the country, and attempt - he failed miserably by the way - to deal with the Hutu extremists and interahamwe. Hence the First Congo War. Themalau 22:26, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

Military position pre-1965
Right now the article says, "Following the granting of independence on June 30, 1960, he joined the new government as Secretary of the State for Defense. The new government was a coalition between Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and President Joseph Kasavubu, both of whom soon started to struggle for overall power - both attempting to dismiss the other from government with Kasavubu ultimately proving successful. On September 14, 1960 a coup d'état overthrew Lumumba in support of the President. Colonel Mobutu was a key figure in the coup and was significantly rewarded for this work."

Mobutu was definitely a colonel at the time, but was his formal position "secretary of state for defense"? Other sources I have read say that he was chief of staff of the army. In the francophone world, "Secrétaire d'État" is a sub-ministerial position. The Secrétaire d'État does not participate in general cabinet discussions unless his portfolio is being discussed.

Also, the follow passage in the article makes no sense: In 1965, now Lieutenant-General Mobutu seized power from President Kasavubu, following another power struggle between Kasavubu and his prime minister Moise Tshombe. The CIA and the Belgians were actively working in the country to support Mobutu and get rid of Lumumba (whom they regarded as too pro-Soviet) because they felt Mobutu would be a better ally in the Cold War."

By the time of the 1965, Lumumba had been dead for 4 years. There was no need to be rid of him in 1965; they had done that in 1961." I will change that. -- Poldy Bloom 20:59, 16 August 2006 (UTC)

Follow-up As noted above, there is some disagreement in the reference literature over which office Mobutu held. MSN Encarta, "Mobutu Sese Seko," section: "Early Life and Career" describes him as chief of staff of the army, as does the Library of Congress, Federal Research Division, A Country Study: Zaire (Former), Chapter 1, "Historical Setting," section: "The Mutiny of the Force Publique," by René Lemarchand, and Guy Arnold, Africa: A Modern History (London: Atlantic Books, 2005), p. 23. Encyclopedia Britannica, on-line edition, "Mobutu Sese Seko," states he was secretary of state for national defense.

I am going to change the Wikipedia article to reflect the Library of Congress guide. -- Poldy Bloom 05:48, 17 August 2006 (UTC)

There is no explanation of how he went from sergeant to colonel. How he got to be colonel would be interesting as the article states he left the army as sergeant. Can anyone help?

After Lumumba "Africanized" the officer corps following the riots early in his rule, he promoted each officer by one rank. I don't know if colonel follows sergeant, but that's one possible explanation. Josh 00:02, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

Translation of his name to English
I read a book about Kongo and Mobutu and the translation of his name was given as "The cock that leaves no hen unruffled", I can't belive this but there is simply always a chance that something is wrong!

states the same.

—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 134.76.234.75 (talk • contribs) 23 October 2006.


 * That's the Tshiluba translation of his name. The Ngbandi translation is the one stated in the article. Both are correct. Josh 00:03, 13 November 2006 (UTC)


 * It seems to me that "The cock who leaves no hen untouched", is the literal meaning (kuku does mean rooster in the bantu languages I know) whereas the metaphorical meaning is "The all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, will go from conquest to conquest, leaving fire in his wake". The latter seems a bit extravagant, but then, Mobutu was extravagant. --Ezeu 00:30, 13 November 2006 (UTC)


 * I cant see any translation of his name in the current (April 2008) version of the article. Perhaps that is just as well. I found another alternative translation:
 * "The cock who goes from hen to hen knowing no fatigue"
 * --Stor stark7 Speak 20:56, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

When I was resident in Zaire in 1983-84, I was told by local citizens that the name meant "Mobutu the mighty rooster who leaves no hen untouched." Given that "kuku" means "hen", and I believe "seko" means "rooster", I consider this to be accurate. I was told that the language was Lingala, a lingua franca of the military in Zaire. Ptilinopus (talk) 12:40, 7 April 2010 (UTC)

Vandalism
I don't know how to revert a page, so someone else will have to do so, but someone called 62.253.192.92 has twice put in nonsense words. Lindsay H. 14:48, 24 November 2006 (UTC)
 * I have reverted the vandalism. See Help:Reverting for how to do it. --Ezeu 16:00, 24 November 2006 (UTC)

Seventeen children
Source: In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz. I'll check the page number next time I'm at the library.

President For Life

 * How was he "unsuccessful" in annointing himself "President For Life?"


 * I know that the claim is footnoted, but I haven't been able to find anything online verifying it.


 * Can someone post an excerpt from the book where the event is described? Ruthfulbarbarity 15:39, 7 February 2007 (UTC)

Sure thing.

From The Rise and Decline of the Zairian State, p. 211: "It is widely believed that Mobutu's attempt to have himself named Life President in 1972 foundered when former Political Bureau member Kasongo Nyembo, a major chief of the Shaba Luba, remarked that "not even the Emperor of the Luba serves for life."

Josh 01:45, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

I would like to add that while Mobutu was in essence a de facto Life President, he was never a de jure one, though he would have liked to be one.Josh 01:47, 24 February 2007 (UTC)


 * I wonder about that. When I lived in Shaba (once and later Katanga) in 1983-84, as principal of a nursing school, an edict came (1983) declaring a national holiday in honour of President Mobutu's declaring himself president-for-life. I had to announce it to the students that morning. The students asked what the holiday was for, and I told them. There was a howl of fury - which I had to quash, for it did not do for any suspicion to fall on a foreigner of engaging in political comment! I believe however, that the decision, if in fact taken, must have been allowed to fall, for a year later (mid-1984) there were again presidential elections. High schools and tertiary institutions were closed early to enable senior students to return home to vote. The vote method was the usual red card/green card = no/yes for the only candidate. Names were checked against ID cards and polling lists at the polling station desk, where armed soldiers observed the colour card one took; one then entered the polling booth, shut the door, and put the card in the ballot box (hence, secret ballot!). Mobutu was re-elected president with approx 99.5% yes vote. A news report (on SABC) announced the result, then added the comment, "President Mobutu was asked why he did not declare himself president-for-life, and he said it was because he did not wish to appear a dictator." Ptilinopus (talk) 12:55, 7 April 2010 (UTC)

Does anybody know if Mobutu's famous leopardskin toque was actually derived from some sort of traditional African headgear, or was it merely an Africanized version of a British Army "garryowen", which it resembles in shape. -Ken Burch

Dunno, but the leopard was his personal symbol, mainly due to the (undoubtedly fictitious) encounter with a leopard he had as a child. Josh 15:47, 16 April 2007 (UTC)

Name translation
How does his eight-word self-given name possibly translate to forty-one words in English? I suppose we could reduce it (to "Allpowerfulwarrior hisendurance dominatingwillofvictory winscontinually destroyseverything arisesfromblood ashes hisenemies likethesun nightconquerer", which would be a super-basic version of "The all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, goes from conquest to conquest, leaving fire in his wake and arising from the blood and ashes of his enemies like the Sun which conquers the night". I'm rather doubtful that whatever African language this is would have terms as so detailed to approximate ideas such as "arises-from-blood", but I don't know.  At any rise, I can't imagine how this could be cut down to less than ten words.  Nyttend 21:20, 24 February 2007 (UTC)
 * Where did that name come from anyway? Because the reference gives a much shorter (plausible) name in french and casts some doubt on the english translation. The article should reflect that he invented/created/interpreted the translation into english. Are we doing some puffery by proxy? My native is Portuguese and like i know that translations into english usually need extra words to convey the proper meaning...but 5 times more?Galf 20:44, 7 March 2007 (UTC)
 * The literal translation is easy, it means "The rooster who leaves no hen untouched". It is the metaphorical meaning that is tricky. --Ezeu 20:53, 7 March 2007 (UTC)
 * So what's tricky about that one? et pluribus unnum means the exact same thing....the most powerful around, the supreme kahuna. To go from there to a tale of blood and conquest sounds to me more like someone got a little carried away trying to give the (supposedly) ignorant westerners something to print. Notice how the French translation in the source given is....shorter. So my proposal is we give the direct translation, preferably with a good source and then we add that he claimed that his name meant the bloody tale of conquest. It's balanced and the reader can decide if african names have deeper meanings (5 times deeper) or if he just enjoyed a little self praise.Galf 21:59, 7 March 2007 (UTC)

The Time had an article in 1972 about zairization (zairianization) of names :
 * The President, as it happens, had that thought in mind. Last week he announced that he was considering renaming himself Sese-Seko-Kuku-Ngbendu-Wa-Za-Banga Mobutu, which means, roughly, the hot-blooded warrior and man of the soil who cannot know defeat because of his endurance and his inflexible will to win and who belongs to all Zaïre. Later, though, he mercifully decided to make it simply Mobutu-Sese-Seko.''

(emphasis added by me) --moyogo 22:57, 7 March 2007 (UTC) Seriously though, the translation currently given in the article is a joke. ---moyogo 23:00, 7 March 2007 (UTC)

A recent article from the Daily Nation says:
 * Ngbendu Wazabanga. Literally translated as "hot pepper", "green," and "it stings". Kuku ngbendu wazabanga is an Ngbandi proverb whose translation could mean: "Even if it is not ripe, hot pepper stings"

So whatever else roughly translated is very figurative. The long translations try to state every possible meaning. --moyogo 23:19, 7 March 2007 (UTC)


 * My knowledge of African languages lags seriously...that is to say that I speak only Portuguese. However, my previous point still stands, was this just a translation for "ignorant westerners"? I'd like to point out that even the supposed proper name for the country, Zaire is in fact a Portuguese corruption of another African word, Nzere (river). And my question again, is there any substantiation to the name given in english other than the one given by Mobuto himself?
 * On the river name, I could translate Nzadi o Nzere (the Congo) as "river of rivers", "river that swallows other rivers" (as given in the zaire article) or "most powerful and great river that swallows all other tiny rivers that are no match to it and that feeds all the land of Congo around it" but that would just be creativity on my part, not translation. It sounds better though :-) BTW, the proverb: "Malaguetas verdes também  picam", in Portuguese just needs one more word Galf 23:55, 7 March 2007 (UTC)

Most of my sources (I have several) say Mobutu's name translates to "the all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, will go from conquest to conquest, leaving fire in his wake" (in Ngbandi) and "invincible warrior: cock who leaves no chick intact" or "rooster who covers all the hens/chickens" (in Tshiluba). —The preceding unsigned comment was added by MinnesotanConfederacy (talk • contribs).


 * Perhaps we should add a foonote with the different translations and the references. --Ezeu 17:07, 16 April 2007 (UTC)
 * I've started one, which I assume will become amusingly lengthy. ;) - BanyanTree 09:21, 14 May 2007 (UTC)
 * The translation given by Young and Turner in The Rise and Decline of the Zairian State (p. 153) is "all-conquering warrior who triumphs over all obstacles"; another common translation, incorrect by their account, is "cock who leaves no hen intact." Martin Meredith's The Fate of Africa, Blaine Harden's Africa: Dispatches from a Fragile Continent, and David Lamb's The Africans all list "the all-powerful warrior who, because of his endurance and inflexible will to win, will go from conquest to conquest, leaving fire in his wake" as the translation. Josh 02:43, 22 May 2007 (UTC)
 * You appear to have more credible sources than anyone else. Why don't you rewrite the footnote to emphasize the most common name?  The conflicting translations are not consequential enough for a section in the main body, imo, but interesting enough for a long footnote. - BanyanTree 05:36, 22 May 2007 (UTC)

"Early years" authenticity...
The authenticity in the last paragraph of this section (particularly the last few sentences of said paragraph) is dubious.

To say factually that the CIA and Belgium favored Mobutu because they thought he would be a better ally in the Cold War is quite a definite statement to try and make. If anything, this is a sweeping assertion. There need to be more neutrality in that last paragraph.

Doesn't anyone recognize the fact that Belgium supported Mobutu overthrowing Lumumba? So did the CIA? The CIA is notorious for disrupting foreign governments and sparking coups. So therefore, one cannot say for sure without facts that either view is true.

Mobutu was likely supported for multifarious reasons, for example, because he was a better ally in the Cold War, but perhaps also because Belgium and the CIA knew they could more easily use and manipulate a more corrupt man.

Does my discussion sound one-sided?

Well so does the story.

Let's see if we can add some neutrality to it. Mobutu obviously was not a saint. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.43.93.12 (talk) 11:06, 27 April 2007 (UTC).

No one said he was a saint. But they DID support him because he was known to be West-leaning and anticommunist. And it should be recalled that Mobutu at the time was not corrupt, and was even pro-democracy. The CIA itself did not overthrow Lumumba, Mobutu did on his own, though he did not do so until he was assured he would enjoy U.S. backing if he did so. Josh 17:49, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

Good article nomination on hold
This article's Good Article promotion has been put on hold. During review, some issues were discovered that can be resolved without a major re-write. This is how the article, as of September 13, 2007, compares against the six good article criteria:


 * 1. Well written?: [[Image:Symbol wait.svg|15px]] For the most part, the article conforms to the Manual of Style. There are, however, a few issues to be dealt with. Just FYI: According to the MOS, there is no preference for single or double spaces after a full stop because it doesn't show up anywhere but the edit window. There are several facts that are placed as single-sentence paragraphs. These should be integrated into existing paragraphs. Examples are in: One-man rule and Family. The last paragraph of Legacy is very poorly written. It needs to be rewritten to include a basic definition of what the email scams are first. We need a definition before its context and connection to the subject at hand can be further intimated.
 * 2. Factually accurate?: [[Image:Symbol wait.svg|15px]] Mostly well-sourced, but I have added fact tags to claims needing citations. Remember to directly cite anything like to be challenged (Example: assertions of the opinions of groups or individuals) and always quotations. Just to clarify my purpose and reasoning in adding those tags, I'll include the words of a better reviewer than I, "the paragraphs in question are packed with information and it's difficult to know what's covered by the single end-ref. A cite at the end of the paragraph is really the bare minimum required." Adding fact tags isn't meant to suggest that the items are untrue, but that readers need reminding that they supported by reliable sources, usually because of their potentially contentious nature. An example of where the article does do this is the second sentence of the one-man rule section. But on a more concrete issue, there are multiple sections, several of them large, without a single citation. This lack of citations is borderline on whether to quick-fail the article, but if you can comprehensively cite the following sections within seven days, the article may be passable.


 * Military coup and consolidation of power
 * Relations with the Soviet Union
 * Coalition government
 * Overthrow
 * Death
 * Legacy
 * The last paragraph of Relations with the People's Republic of China
 * 3. Broad in coverage?: [[Image:Symbol wait.svg|15px]] Though mostly comprehensive when it comes to the core biographical info, the article needs expansion in a few places. The Death section either needs to be expanded or placed chronologically as part of another section. The arts and literature section is pretty scant. Not saying you didn't do your job, but it looks odd. A good option might be to integrate the most notable ones as part of the introduction, in order to even more clearly state the subject's notability (example: ''...and whose rule was the subject of such notable works of fiction as...").
 * 4. Neutral point of view?: [[Image:Symbol support vote.svg|15px]] The article does a pretty fair job of staying neutral, especially considering the subject matter. Refraining from using sensationalist language when it comes to violence he fomented helps. Citations for sections such as Legacy will help here though.
 * 5. Article stability? [[Image:Symbol support vote.svg|15px]] Article is not the subject of any major on-going conflicts.
 * 6. Images?: [[Image:Symbol support vote.svg|15px]] Properly sourced and utilized.

Please address these matters soon and then leave a note here showing how they have been resolved. After 48 hours the article should be reviewed again. If these issues are not addressed within 7 days, the article may be failed without further notice. Thank you for your work so far. — Van Tucky  Talk 23:06, 13 September 2007 (UTC)

Well then please fail this article without further notice
I say let's "fail without further notice", i.e. drop that GA nomination and revert the strange mutilations wrought down upon us by GA. The article is a mess now with citation needed tags spread all over, even though the relevant citations are, in fact, given at the end of each paragraph. This is no incentive to improvement. &mdash; mark &#9998; 11:54, 14 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Note that I object to the fact-tags primarily. Most other suggestions given above are valuable. It is just that I do not see the added value of the GA operation. &mdash; mark &#9998; 12:10, 14 September 2007 (UTC)
 * This is not the place to pick a battle over Wiki policy. Improving the article status is a goal for all articles. I'll fix it up this weekend. The article was, to a degree, a mess to begin with in certain places. I just didnt notice how bad. Perspicacite 12:50, 14 September 2007 (UTC)
 * I'll echo Perspicacite's first comment, but if you have an objection to the result of this review, you are of course free to present a case at GA review. Van Tucky  Talk 18:44, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

"good article" nomination failed
Per the failure to complete the above improvements within a week's time. Thank you for your work so far, and if you have an objection to the result you may take it GA review. Van Tucky  Talk 18:50, 21 September 2007 (UTC)

Congrats
Who's been editing this slice of fried gold -- congratulations to the editor (s) who made this article such an enjoyable read. Michael talk 10:10, 2 January 2008 (UTC)


 * It is really good. I'm still pondering its neutrality, but the more I read (in the secondary sources and elsewhere), the better I think this article is.  Also, it really doesn't need copyediting much or at all.  I'm going to read it one more time and see if I can fix anything, but I think it's a really well-written article.  Congratulations to the editors.Levalley (talk) 00:53, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

no billions?
The following sentence, in particular the parenthetical, seems overly sweeping. "He worked hard on little but to increase his personal fortune, which in 1984 was estimated to amount to US$5 billion,[16][17] most of it in Swiss banks (however, many now suspect he was never a billionaire at all[18])."

To say that "MANY now suspect he was never a billionaire" from an 11 year old cnn article is perhaps not a factual representation of that article. From the article, it seems only to be a Swiss bank which believes this (Swiss banks, you may remember, in the past have attempted to hide the assets of various people). 12.206.222.20 (talk) 18:55, 2 March 2008 (UTC)

pronunciation
Where does his "own" pronunciation come from? It's neither Lingala nor French. kwami (talk) 22:31, 3 April 2008 (UTC)
 * That unverified phonetical transcription was introduced by an anonymous user and hasn't been referenced since. --moyogo (talk) 09:49, 4 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'll delete it, then. Would you happen to know the correct tones in Lingala? kwami (talk) 20:18, 4 April 2008 (UTC)

dictator
According to logic used in the Pinochet article, this article's introduction should be changed to include the term "dictator". Let's wait a week or so to see what happens there and apply it here for consistency. 903M (talk) 06:23, 21 August 2008 (UTC)

Second coup and consolidation of power
I think the wording and grammar of this section need to be improved. I'm working on it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Maplealtar (talk • contribs) 07:29, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Comments while copyediting
This is beyond simple copyediting for style and grammar, but the last sentence in the One-man rule section perhaps belongs in the next section.

The next section, Foreign policy/Relations with the United States would benefit from having a more coherent sense of time. When it says "was the third largest donor," I assume it means under Nixon, Reagan etc. - therefore, some time ago. This time frame should be made explicit. We learn the relationships cooled in 74-75, so the previous warmth was from the 60s? Early 70s? Should say when. The topic sentence makes it sound much more recent.

It's an excellent article. It stays well within Wikipedia's usual tone, but uses crisp and parsimonious language. It gives just the right amount of detail, leaving the reader with sources to find more information if desired. It was a pleasure to tidy it up a little. I don't think it needs much or any work, and should have GA status. It's fascinating just how many events Mobutu was involved in (e.g., the genocide in Rwanda). Maybe we should link him to the evil genius page.

I was a little unsure how to handle the various levels of headings. They seemed sort of random to me. I tried to make them consistent.

Did his remains ever make it back to the Democratic Republic of Congo?

The 'in the past two decades' part of his legacy needs to be time-adjusted. It must refer to the period 77-97 (his death), but it isn't clear and will become less clear over time.

Anyway, it's an outstanding article.Levalley (talk) 01:40, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

One Man Rule thingy
One of the statements here seems ambiguous. Actually, I don't think it's "ambiguous" so much as "misleading." This gives the (pretty clear) impression that Mobutu himself fled the country in 1981. The rest of the article doesn't seem to support this, and since it seems to be mentioned only in passing that makes me think the section may in fact be referring to the nobody he tortured and then made Prime Minister for a little while instead of Mobutu himself.

So which is it?

If the person who fled the country wasn't Mobutu, the sentence needs to be rewritten so that Mobutu is no longer the clear antecedent of "he" when it talks about the person who ran away and later returned as an ambassador. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Archer884 (talk • contribs) 16:30, 13 July 2009 (UTC)


 * Ok, I still don't know anything about this topic, but have been unable to confirm that Mobutu left the country in '81 and so am pretty well convinced that the sentence should be referring to the other person. I'm going to "fix" it and, if it turns out I'm wrong and Mobutu did actually flee in '81, someone else can put it back. :) 12.19.84.33 (talk) 18:59, 31 July 2009 (UTC)


 * All right, I rewrote that little bit. Only catch is that it originally read "return to the fold" instead of simply "return," which i thought was a little... extraneous. I didn't include "to the fold" in this version, but if Nguza in fact did not return to Zaire then the current wording is inaccurate, as the literal meaning of what I added is that he ran from Zaire and then game back to Zaire. I just checked the Nguza article to try to get some info on the situation at the time, but the Mobutu and Nguza articles don't even agree about dates (1985 or 1986?) and the ministerial position isn't even mentioned in the Nguza article, so I'm not sure that reallly did me much good. 12.19.84.33 (talk) 19:07, 31 July 2009 (UTC)

Tutsis "long opposed"?
In the section regarding his overthrow, the article currently states that the "Tutsis had long opposed Mobutu, due to his open support for Rwandan Hutu extremists responsible for the Rwandan genocide in 1994." The wording of "long opposed" doesn't seem to make a lot of sense in this context. If the genocide took place in 1994, and Mobutu was overthrown in 1997, that doesn't leave a great span of time for a "long opposition" to take place. --OuroborosCobra (talk) 01:38, 1 October 2010 (UTC)
 * Yeah, it's confusing the long-running issue of political identity among the Banyamulenge in Zaire with Mobutu's support for the Hutu-run government of Rwanda. And there's probably even an argument that if you pulled apart those two issues, you still couldn't make a blanket statement of any kind, given Barthélémy Bisengimana's role in the Mobutu government. - BanyanTree 01:43, 19 September 2011 (UTC)

Last sentence in 419 section?
Someone who has more time please try and see what the deal is with the last sentence of the following paragraph:

He is a constantly recurring theme in Advance fee fraud (419) scams ... promise a percentage of his wealth to the email recipient if the recipient does a few things first, including pay advance fees. Another cause of his unscrupulous legacy abroad is his record on human rights as well as mismanagement of the economy and the institutionalization of corruption.

It might have been put in the wrong place, or just shoehorned in inappropriately by someone who was determined not to let anyone imply Seko's victimization by 419s.

Religion
While I see a report in Time magazine that Mobutu was baptized in the Roman Catholic church, he is reported to have promoted a religion (Mobutism) with himself as the messiah: President Mobutu bans religion in schools. So, does Mobutism deserve a mention as his religion later in life? -- Donald Albury 19:25, 2 January 2012 (UTC)

Mobutu was a practicing Catholic. "Mobutism" was a political ideology. Josh (talk) 20:41, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

Additional sources
WhisperToMe (talk) 05:24, 15 February 2012 (UTC)
 * Duke, Lynn. Mandela, Mobutu, and Me: A Newswoman's African Journey. Random House Digital, Inc., 2003. 0385503989, 9780385503983.

Congo to NYC via Concorde
Is there a source anywhere that says how this route was done? The range of the Concorde is generally given as 3,900 - 4,500 miles, while the trip from his airport to JFK would be around 6,000; hence they had to stop somewhere for fuell. My first guess would have been Paris, but it says in the linked source that the first nonstop to Paris from his airport was a year or two after his flight to the UN. I would think there is a flight record for it somewhere but I'm not sure how to find it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2607:EA00:101:240A:481D:36E8:3A8E:E2C3 (talk) 16:33, 10 October 2013 (UTC)

Congo Crisis
Re "Lumumba fled to Stanleyville", this is incorrect: Lummumba fled from Leopoldville to try and make his way to Stanleyville to join a rival government set up by Gizenga in Lumumba's name. But Lumumba never made it he was stopped and arrested. Re Mobutu's African title, I always understood that Sese Seko Kuku Ngabendu Wa Za Banga could be translated as military: "the great unstoppable warrior who goes from victory to victory"; OR sexual: "the rooster/cockerel who goes from hen to hen". It might as well be "conqueror of the known universe". 23:01, 21 August 2015 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Noel Ellis (talk • contribs)

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Date discrepancy
The infobox says he took office on 24 November, but the Second coup and consolidation of power section says that was 25 November. — howcheng  {chat} 17:20, 22 November 2017 (UTC)

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Claims of "centralization" are highly tendentious
The article's framing of Mobutu's rule as "highly centralized" in the lead and elsewhere is dubious, to say the least. Scholarly assessments of Mobutu's rule largely characterise his leadership as ultimately characterised by personal networks and the distribution of resources outside formal state structures as the state was allowed to wither, rather than be strengthened. (An easy way to make this apparent is to ask a simple question-- would one characterise the Zairean state at the time of Mobutu's downfall in 1997 as strong, weak, or virtually nonexistent?) If anything this structure was semi-feudal rather than anything resembling a modern state. A useful treatement is to be found in Reno (1997), "Sovereignty and Personal Rule in Zaire". This should ideally be discussed in less academic terms, but at the very least the existing language, which is wholly inappropriate, should be removed. --Varavour (talk) 03:02, 9 April 2018 (UTC)

I do not agree with calling Mobutu's rule something else than 'highly centralized'. Personal networks were at the centre of his politics, but none of his personal ties with other decisionmakers were durable. Politicians who became too powerful were 'promoted down' by giving them ambassadorial posts far away, or had to flee the country and go into exile (e.g. Karl-I-Bond). Young and Turner noted that a Ministry under the Second Republic was "a hostel for courtiers in transit, not a baronial fief." (Young and Turner, The Rise and Decline of the Zairean State, p. 56) All this meant that Mobutu's power was uncontested and 'incontournable' for a long time. The Economist has an article about this phenomenon of 'musical chairs politics' under Mobutu: CBJH (talk) 20:41, 9 April 2018 (UTC)

Varavour, that is a good point, but on paper, at least, the Zairian state was highly centralized, especially compared to the DRC under the Luluabourg constitution. Whereas the 1964 constitution established a de facto federal system, under Mobutu the provinces (later regions) had no autonomy and were entirely dependent on, and under the direction of, the national government. The withering you spoke of was due more to corruption and inefficiency than to any conscious decision on Mobutu's part. And it should be noted that, at least until the early 1970s (when Zaire's economic troubles began), the regime WAS highly centralized, both on paper and in practice. Josh (talk) 22:46, 2 February 2020 (UTC)

Possible vandalism by Ανδρέας Κρυστάλλης
has repeatedly (1, 2, 3, 4) reinserted the label "far-right" in the lede without any supporting references, and this label contradicts the rest of the existing references. To my knowledge, neither the Kalu and Falola reference nor the Columbia reference support Ανδρέας's label. 207.216.153.13 (talk) 07:01, 12 May 2020 (UTC)
 * I cheched the sources (Columbia and Exploitation and Misrule in Colonial and Postcolonial Africa), including the book. None links Mobutism to far-right.
 * I do not understand how Mobutu's rule can be described as far-right.--Le Petit Chat (talk) 08:02, 12 May 2020 (UTC)

Mobutu's regime has been labelled "far-right" and "Fascist" by many political scientists and historians. Another source was just added. The only notable case of not calling it far-right was Mobutu himself, who claimed that his ideology was "neither left nor right, not even centre". This is mentioned in the article. Are we going to be taking Mobutu's claims seriously? He also said that he practiced "true democracy". Ανδρέας Κρυστάλλης (talk) 09:23, 12 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Mobutu was allied with Ceaucescu, North Korea and China. I read your reference but it is never clearly stated Mobutu's dictature is a far-right regime.--Le Petit Chat (talk) 10:26, 12 May 2020 (UTC)
 * See this chapter, from a book centered on Mobutu: "Ni à droite, ni à gauche, ni au centre" [Not right, not left, not center] https://www.cairn.info/mobutu--9782262049539-page-171.htm --Le Petit Chat (talk) 10:30, 12 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Dear Ανδρέας Κρυστάλλης, I undid your revision. Terms such as "far-right" and "fascist" have specific meanings, and neither does characterise the Mobutu regime very well. Zairianisation is even more associated with state-led economies of the East. Fascism is also more related to ultranationalist regimes in Italy and Argentina at some points in time, but not the Mobutu regime. Authoritarian? Yes. Totalitarian? Sure! But not the terms you are using. Greetings CBJH (talk) 12:52, 12 May 2020 (UTC)

Look, I don't question his close relationships with (and support from) left-wing regimes, such as Maoist China. Don't put words in my mouth. But it's ridiculous to take Mobutu on his word. I will add another source that describes his regime as "Afro-Fascist". Ανδρέας Κρυστάλλης (talk) 12:57, 12 May 2020 (UTC)
 * We gave two sources, non centered on Mobutu, to claim his dictature was Afro-facist. Sources centered on Mobutu don't mentionned that, and Paxton, a specialist of fascism, also reject this theory. I removed this pseudo-debate from the lead, if you really want you can discuss it in the main text.--Le Petit Chat (talk) 08:18, 13 May 2020 (UTC)

Mobutu Ranks
I'm currently working on an Armed Forces of Zaire page along with a Military ranks of Zaire page. I have some questions as Mobutu is listed as both a Marshal in the army and Grand Admiral in the navy. Was he the only one to hold these ranks? What are the rank insignias? Is the Grand Admiral rank referring to the 'Grand Amiral' rank which is the equivalent to NATO OF-9 Admiral or was this an OF-10 rank like Marshal equivalent to Admiral of the fleet/Fleet admiral rank and if so what was its name in French. Thank you.

Lankyant (talk) 05:10, 6 May 2021 (UTC)


 * Far as I know, he was the only person in Congo/Zaire during his time to be declared "Marshal" (a self-appointment I'm sure). The regular army commanders ranks stopped at general. -Indy beetle (talk) 13:11, 6 May 2021 (UTC)


 * Thanks that's exactly as I suspected. The Grand Admiral is the one that's confusing me most. My thinking is that it's more a confusion but I wouldn't be surprised if he had given himself another rank! Lankyant (talk) 15:37, 6 May 2021 (UTC)