In the spring of 2024, five towns in Katanga in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo (hereafter 'DR Congo') provided the setting for a series of unconventional conversations. The inhabitants of these towns were introduced to a collection of historical photographs taken in those localities upto a century ago.
Preserved in Belgium, this material had never been shown in Congo before. The interviews are part of the DE-BIAS project.
The photographs reside in the archives of the Friars Minor of the Flemish province of Saint Joseph, preserved by KADOC-KU Leuven. Among this archive are around 240 photo and glass plate series and photo albums created between 1920 and 1970 in various locations in the current provinces of Lualaba and Haut-Katanga in DR Congo.
In consultation with Donatien Dibwe dia Mwembu, Professor of History at the University of Lubumbashi and expert on the history of the area, a careful selection was made from the visual material related to five of these locations, comprising a mix of photographs of places that still count as landmarks today, to representations of individuals, communities, activities or places for which little or no information was available.
Project collaborators were assigned to visit the locations and initiate conversations with elderly members of the community.
Showing these photos in the places where they were taken, to people who might have been alive when they were taken, triggered vivid memories and resulted in surprising responses from the interviewees. Here we examine some of the selected photographs and interview responses.
Most of those interviewed immediately recognised this image as a sporting event organised for the students of the Mutoshi Technical Institute on a plot of land in Mutoshi, known at the time as Ruwe. According to Papa Kabinda, the photo was taken in the commune of Manika during the 50th-anniversary celebrations of Union Minière in 1956.
Papa Nyembo added that this event took place on a terrain called Matala, on the Avenue du Théâtre. It was frequently visited by workers of Union Minière/Gécamines in their leisure time. Papa Mwilambwe Ngoie remembers that the Salesian Fathers were entrusted with the management of the Technical Institute of Mutoshi and to look after the children of the workers of Ruwe.
Vaulting boxes of the type shown in this photograph are still used there today. The man standing in the foreground has already passed away. His name was Célestin. According to Marcelin Mukembe Mubedi, the Mutoshi Technical Institute was well known for supporting sportsmen and women of all kinds. He even remembers a group of local students participating in the Kinshasa marathon.
Maman Kayombo adds that sporting events like this one were often organised by Gécamines on the occasion of a festival called mangeurs du cuivre, on the feast day of Saint Eloi and Saint Barbara, the patron saints of metal and mine workers.
Nana Senga, ‘Interviews Kolwezi’, supervision Donatien Dibwe, 2024.
According to Hubert Mwanke, this photo was taken on Lac Moëro on the Congolese side between Kilwa and Nkole Island, while fishing. The people on board have three different tasks.
The first group is responsible for propulsion. They sit at the sides of the boat. There are six of them. Their number depends on the size of the sloop; some fishing boats have only two. The second group is in charge of putting the nets in the water. This number is also linked to the capacity of the sloop: here two people seem to have been assigned this task. The third group consists of two young people waiting for the nets to come out of the water to bring the fish on board.
Mama Célestine Kalenga points out that before the arrival of colonisation and missionaries, fishing was also the work of children. It was a trade that was passed down from generation to generation. Just like a weaver, a blacksmith or a farmer did everything with his family (mainly the boys), a fisherman took his son to assist him and pass on his knowledge.
Albert Kimpwa recalls that the participation of children in fishing was discouraged with the arrival of the missionaries. They expected them during catechesis and at school. The colonial administration also restricted the employment of young people on fishing boats.
Hervé Katolo, ‘Interviews Lac Moero’, supervision Donatien Dibwe, 2024.
Emmanuel Mudimbi recognises the parish of Saint-Bavon in this photograph: 'Our old parish was built in 1951, prior to the erection of the cathedral right next to it. At that time, it was the first church in the city for Black parishioners. European citizens frequented the parish church of Sainte-Thérèse in the centre of Kamina'.
Symphorien Mwenze confirms that Saint-Bavon was indeed established so that Black church folk could have their own parish instead of continuing to share Sainte-Thérèse with Kamina’s white population. Before that, the parish priest would say mass on Saturdays for European parishioners and on Sundays for the Congolese.
Alphonse Mutombo, ‘Interviews Kamina and Luabo’, supervision Donatien Dibwe, 2024.
The DE-BIAS project aims to highlight underrepresented voices as a starting point to recontextualise contentious cultural heritage collections. Through co-creation events, crowdsourcing initiatives, the creation of a vocabulary and knowledge graph of contentious terms, and the creation of an online tool to detect biased terms in cultural heritage metadata, DE-BIAS aims to help the cultural heritage sector into the postcolonial era.