History's deadliest king - by Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Amanda Zhu

On December 12, 1904, Chief Lontulu laid 110 twigs

1904 年 12 月 12 日，

隆土路酋長把 110 根樹枝 攤在外交委員會的面前。

in front of a foreign commission.

Every twig represented a person in his village who died

每根樹枝代表他村子裡

because of King Leopold’s horrific regime in the Congo—

每一位因為利奧波德國王 在剛果的恐怖政權而死的村民——

all in the name of rubber.

為的只是橡膠。

Chief Lontulu separated the twigs into four piles:

隆土路酋長把樹枝分為四堆：

tribal nobles, men, women, and children—

部落貴族、男人、女人，和孩童——

then proceeded to name the dead of one-by-one.

接著逐一唸出每位死者的名字。

His testimony joined hundreds of others to help bring an end

他和其他數百人的證詞，

協助將歷史上最大的 暴行之一畫上句點。

to one of the greatest atrocities in history.

Beginning in the late 1800s,

從 1800 年代末開始，

European countries participated in the so-called “Scramble for Africa.”

歐洲國家參與了 所謂的「瓜分非洲」。

They colonized 90% of the continent,

90% 的非洲大陸都被他們殖民，

exploiting African resources and enriching their countries.

剝削非洲的資源， 讓自己的國家更富足。

Belgium had recently become an independent kingdom.

比利時才剛成為獨立的王國，

Its ruler, Leopold II, wanted to acquire what he called

其統治者利奧波德二世 也想要分一杯羹，

他形容成「切一片 這塊壯麗的非洲蛋糕」。

“a slice of this magnificent African cake.”

Meanwhile, he read colonial explorer Henry Morton Stanley’s reports

同時，

他閱讀了殖民探險家 亨利莫頓斯坦利的非洲旅行報告，

about traveling through Africa.

Stanley emphasized the Congo basin’s majesty.

斯坦利很強調剛果盆地的壯觀。

So, in 1879, Leopold contracted him to return to the Congo.

所以，在 1879 年，

利奧波德聘請他返回剛果。

There, Stanley deceived leaders into signing some 450 treaties

在那裡，斯坦利欺騙當地的領導人 簽下約 450 份協議，

allowing for land use.

允許土地的使用。

Leopold persuaded the US and European powers to grant him ownership

利奧波德說服美國和歐洲列強

授予他剛果的所有權，

of the Congo,

pledging to protect free trade in the region.

他承諾會保護該地區的自由貿易。

And on May 29, 1885, a territory more than 80 times the size of Belgium

1885 年 5 月 29 日，

這塊面積比比利時 大 80 餘倍的領土，

and home to 20 million people was declared his own private colony—

2000 萬人的家園，

被宣告成為他的私人殖民地——

by no one it actually belonged to.

做此宣告的都未擁有這塊地方的主權。

Leopold lost no time consolidating power in what he called the Congo Free State.

利奧波德抓緊時間，在他所稱的 「剛果自由邦」中鞏固權力。

He claimed land, raised an army,

他索求土地，招建軍隊，

and forced many Congolese men to complete unpaid labor.

並強迫許多剛果人做無償的勞務。

Things got even worse when, in 1887,

1887 年，狀況變得更糟糕，

a Scottish inventor redeveloped the pneumatic tire,

那年，蘇格蘭發明家 重新開發了充氣輪胎，

creating a massive international market for rubber.

為橡膠創造了巨大的國際商機。

The Congo had one of the world’s largest supplies.

剛果是世界最大的橡膠供應國之一。

Leopold seized the opportunity,

利奧波德抓住機會，

requiring villages to meet ever-greater rubber quotas.

要求村落要達成比以往 更高的橡膠產額。

Congolese men had to harvest the material from wild vines.

剛果人必須從野生藤蔓 取得這種材料。

As supplies drained, they walked for days to gather enough.

隨著供應源耗盡，

他們得走好幾天的路 才能收集足夠的量。

Leopold’s army entered villages and held women and children hostage

利奧波德的軍隊進入村落， 挾持婦女和孩童作為人質，

until the impossible quota was met.

要達成不可能達成的產額才肯放人。

Soldiers sexually violated women and deprived children of food and water.

士兵性侵婦女，

剝奪孩童的食物和水。

Congolese people rebelled—

剛果人民起來反抗——

they refused to cooperate, fought Leopold’s soldiers,

他們拒絕配合，

和利奧波德的士兵打起來，

hid in the forests, and destroyed rubber vines.

躲在森林裡，破壞橡膠藤。

Leopold’s army responded to resistance or failure to meet quotas

利奧波德的軍隊對於抵抗 或未能達成配額的處理方式

with unflinching torture and executions.

是毫不猶豫的酷刑和處決。

Because guns and ammunition were expensive,

因為槍和彈藥很昂貴，

officers ordered soldiers to prove they used their bullets in the line of duty

軍官命令士兵要證明 他們的子彈都是用在勤務上，

by removing a hand from anyone they killed.

證明方式就是殺人之後取下一隻手。

However, many soldiers hunted using their guns.

然而，許多士兵用他們的槍去打獵。

To avoid harsh penalties and account for lost bullets,

為了躲避嚴厲的懲罰 和解釋用掉的子彈，

they cut off living people’s hands.

他們直接砍下活人的手。

They also used this practice as punishment.

他們也把這種做法當作懲罰。

If rubber quotas weren’t met,

如果沒有達到橡膠配額，

soldiers would sever people’s hands and bring them to their commanders

士兵就會砍下村民的手， 來代替橡膠，交給指揮官。

instead of rubber.

The regime dramatically upended daily life and agriculture,

這個政權大大顛覆了 日常生活和農業，

causing widespread starvation and disease.

造成饑荒和疾病無所不在。

Meanwhile, King Leopold built monuments and private estates

同時，利奧波德國王

用他壓榨來的財富 建造紀念碑和私人莊園。

with the wealth he extracted.

Soon, people brought international attention to the horrific abuses

沒多久，利奧波德的剛果自由邦中

這些可怕的虐待引發了國際關注。

of Leopold’s Congo Free State.

In 1890, American journalist George Washington Williams

1890 年，

美國記者喬治華盛頓威廉斯 指控利奧波德國王

accused King Leopold of “deceit, fraud, robberies, arson,

「欺騙、詐欺、搶劫、縱火、

murder, slave-raiding, and [a] general policy of cruelty.”

謀殺、劫掠奴隸，

和普遍採用殘酷政策」。

In 1903, Diplomat Roger Casement wrote a report that corroborated

1903 年，

外交官羅傑卡斯曼寫了一份報告，

證實了這些暴行的性質和規模。

the nature and scale of the atrocities.

It was published the following year.

該報告於次年出版。

In response, Leopold appointed his own commission to investigate the accusations.

利奧波德的回應是指派他自己的委員會

來調查這些指控。

They heard numerous witness statements in the Congo— Chief Lontulu’s included.

他們聽了剛果無數證人的陳述——

包括隆土路酋長的。

The report only confirmed the worst.

該報告證實了最糟糕的情況。

Facing pressure, Leopold relinquished control of the Congo

面對壓力，

利奧波德於 1908 年

將剛果的控制權交給比利時政府。

to the Belgian government in 1908.

But this did not mean justice.

但這不等於正義。

The Belgian state awarded Leopold 50 million francs

比利時政府獎賞 利奧波德 5000 萬法郎，

“in testimony for his great sacrifice in favor of the Congo.”

「以象徵他為剛果做出的偉大犧牲」。

He died the following year.

隔年他就過世了。

Crowds booed his funeral procession.

群眾對他的送葬隊伍發出噓聲。

For more than 50 years following, the Congo remained a Belgian colony,

接下來的 50 多年，

剛果一直是比利時的殖民地，

until declaring independence in 1960.

直到 1960 年宣佈獨立。

That year, the Congo elected its first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba.

那年，剛果選出了第一任總理，

帕特里斯盧蒙巴。

But months later, he was unseated in a US and Belgium backed coup.

但幾個月後，

由美國和比利時 支持的政變將他趕下台。

In early 1961, Lumumba was assassinated under Belgian supervision.

1961 年初，

在比利時的監督下，盧蒙巴被暗殺。

The coup launched the country into a decades-long dictatorship.

政變讓該國陷入了 長達數十年的獨裁統治。

Around 10 million Congolese people are thought to have died

一般認為約有 1000 萬名剛果人

是在利奧波德佔領和掠奪 剛果的這段時期死亡。

during Leopold’s occupation and looting of the Congo.

Despite this devastation, calls for reparations have gone unanswered.

儘管受到這樣的蹂躪，

要求賠償的呼聲卻沒有得到回應。

To this day, throughout Belgium can be found the monuments King Leopold built

至今，

在比利時各地仍能找到利奧波德國王

on a foundation of inconceivable cruelty.

靠著極度殘酷所建造的紀念碑。