Lomano LuaLua is A National Treasure

Model 500 - Lightspeed
(off 'Sirius Is A Friend - Archiv #1')
more info on discogs
buy it off Gemm

The Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) is Africa's third largest state. The state of the Congo, founded in 1885, became a Belgian colony in 1908 and was administered by Belgium until independence in 1960. Mobutu Sese Seko, formerly commander-in-chief of the Congolese National Army, came to power in a coup in 1965 and was elected president in 1970. Legislative power was vested in a unicameral National Legislative Council, with candidates proposed by the sole legal political party, Mouvement Populaire de la Revolution (MPR). Political reforms were announced in April 1990 and President Mobutu called a National Conference to draft a new constitution although the government refused to grant it sovereign status. Mobutu accepted an opposition-dominated government under Prime Minister Etienne Tshisekedi in October 1991. His attempts to replace this with MPR-dominated governments failed and the National Conference confirmed the Tshisekedi government as legitimate in August 1992. From 1992 to 1995 the president and the opposition were locked in a power struggle. In January 1994 President Mobutu dissolved the government and on 9 April 1994 promulgated a Transitional Constitutional Act which regulated a 15-month period of transition to democracy. In July 1995 the transition period was extended by a further two years. In October 1996 fighting broke out between Zairean Tutsis (Banyamulenge) and the Zairean army in North and South Kivu provinces which had received an influx of Hutu refugees from Rwanda. The pro-Hutu army attempted to expel the Tutsis from the region but found themselves outgunned by the rebels, under the leadership of Laurent Kabila, who were backed by the Rwandan and Ugandan governments. Kabila's Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire (AFDL) captured Kinshasha in May 1997 and President Mobutu fled. Zaire was renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo. A rebellion against the government of Laurent Kibala began in Kivu on 2 August 1998 and by the end of of the month the rebels had seized large areas in the east and west of the country. Angola, Chad, Kenya, Namibia and Zimbabwe promised President Kabila military support. The Angolan army quickly recaptured several towns in the south-west, but the rebels maintained their grip on the eastern regions. The rebel movement, the Congolese Democratic Rally (RCD) was supported by Uganda and Rwanda. Uganda signed a unilateral peace agreement in April 1999 after a meeting with President Kabila, but was reported to have trained rebel troops. On 17 May 1999, Ernest Wamba dia Wamba, the RCD leader, was ousted, splitting the movement into two distinct factions.

SOME FUN FACTS ABOUT THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO:
- The Democratic Republic of Congo has a population density of 20 per sq. km.
- It is 2,344,858 sq. km. (905,355 sq. miles) big.
- The National Holiday of the DRC is the 24th of November.
- 22.7% of the population are illiterate.
- Although there are 50,000 troops in the Army, there are only 90 in the Navy.
- You can call the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of Congo on 0171-235 6137, or write to them at 26 Chesham Place, London, SW1X 8HH. Charge d'Affaires is Nsangolo Iwula.
- Two of the main industrial products are cement and bicycles.