Home » History » African History » In The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: A Book Review

In The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: A Book Review

© Jessica Powers

What kind of political system do you get when colonial powers pull out of the colony quickly, leaving only seventeen educated Africans and a legacy of cruelty and forced labor behind? Michela Wrong calls the result a kleptocracy in her book, "In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in Mobutu's Congo."

The word kleptocracy -- or government by theft -- is an astute description of Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga's thirty year dictatorship in the country of Zaire (now known as the Congo). For thirty years, Mobutu siphoned millions -- perhaps billions -- of dollars from IMF and World Bank loans. The money paid for lavish estates around the world; cars and other expensive items for members of Mobutu's ministry; food and champagne and entertainment. (Wrong ends the book explaining the mystery of Mobutu's money. The mystery is not whether Mobutu stole money that the IMF lent so that he could alleviate his country's economic woes. The mystery is why the IMF continued to loan him money, knowing full well where it went. And the other mystery is where the money went, exactly. Swiss banks reveal only $4 million in accounts belonging to Mobutu. Did money fall through his fingers as quickly as he acquired it? Or did he create well-hidden accounts with fictional names? No one is sure.)

Wrong's book is like a wide river, flowing slowly from history to personal experience, from interviews with important officials to literary allusions and metaphors. Mr. Kurtz, the individual named in the title, is the lead character in Joseph Conrad's book, "Heart of Darkness," an individual who has "gone native" and, possibly, become a cannibal. Wrong argues that the book is a reflection of the "monstrous passions at the core of the human soul, lying ready to emerge when man's better instincts are suspended" (10). The title suggests that Mobutu followed in Mr. Kurtz's path. As he became more and more powerful, he, too, began to write his own moral code. He, too, became a cannibal, feeding off the lives and poverty of the citizens he led.

"In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz" is both an indictment and an explanation/defense of Mobutu's rule. Wrong is clearly sympathetic to the plight of Africans leading countries fresh out of colonialism. She draws a line demonstrating the continuity from Belgian colonial policies to Mobutu's political failures. Nevertheless, she refuses to blame colonialism when Mobutu displays faults for which he alone should claim responsibility.

The copyright of the article In The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: A Book Review in African History is owned by . Permission to republish In The Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: A Book Review in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.